Reported leaked minutes show NZR accepted the Rugby Championship schedule

New Zealand Rugby has a new fight on its hands, with claims that leaked documents show that they agreed on a schedule that would involve the All Blacks being quarantined on Christmas Day.

NZR CEO Mark Robinson denies signing a deal that included a six-week Rugby Championship that would end on December 12, ahead of a two-week quarantine period for players as ordered by the New York government. Zeeland.

Both Newshub and the Sydney Morning Herald report that leaked minutes of a meeting between SANZAAR CEOs show that New Zealand was not “surprised” by the announcement of the six-week tournament.

Newshub said the minutes clearly show that everyone agreed to a six-week draw and that all parties were comfortable with the announcement of the Sept. 24 draw.

The Sydney Morning Herald

stated: “Leaked minutes of a SANZAAR CEO meeting have revealed that New Zealand Rugby has agreed to play a six-week Rugby Championship ending on December 12, despite their insistence to the contrary.”

SMH says it obtained the minutes from New Zealand. They “clearly show” that the six-week format was agreed upon by the four nations.

However, speaking at the Mike Hosking breakfast this morning, New Zealand Rugby Players Association head Rob Nichol said the date of the reported minutes was not aligned.

“All the information we have is that no [agree to it]”Nicol said.” The history of the minutes was interesting because our information shows that there was not even a meeting on that date and no one saw any minutes.

“There is a real irony in this because what we have learned is exactly at the same time that Sanzaar’s management published a press release that effectively changed the draw to show our last game on December 12, the broadcasters themselves had circulated a draw that showed the last game on December 5 and everyone approved it, ”he said.“ So we have a lot of questions because it is our players and the team management that will be asked to go through this and until we have some transparency, we will not commit to anything. “

Meanwhile, Robinson has also rejected Australian rugby president Hamish McLennan’s claim that transtasman relations are at a “low point.”

He claimed the comment was a “strategy” that New Zealand would not get involved in, and said both McLennan and Australian CEO Rob Clarke had extended an invitation to NZR top brass to Australia over the past fortnight.

“I think it’s a bit of a boast, to be honest … we don’t operate like that,” Robinson said.

“There has been no agreement to play the tournament on December 12 at any time or in any meeting.”

The SMH wrote: “Robinson may have been consistent, but the records show that the SANZAAR and RA side of the story is the most accurate account of events.”

All Blacks captain Sam Cane said the players were “shocked” by the possibility of being in quarantine on December 25.

All Blacks coach Ian Foster told Cane that “we didn’t see it coming.”

“Yeah, we’re not too excited,” Cane said of the Christmas quarantine.

“It’s not our fight to fight. Our thing is to prepare for these two test matches against Australia. To have that certainty after so much uncertainty before now is quite impressive. For the players, that gives us a clear focus of what will come next. a few months wondering what will come next. “