THE MAIN DECISION-MAKERS in the Pro14 are set to hold a critical meeting tomorrow to discuss contingency plans to deal with a possible fixture crisis caused by the ongoing coronavirus.
With northern Italy in lockdown, and the probability of the Ireland/Italy Six Nations match being called off, games involving the two Italian clubs, Benetton and Zebre, are being monitored closely. Already, their respective fixtures scheduled for this weekend have been postponed.
Restrictions on public gatherings in certain parts of Italy are in place until 1 May – but this date is likely to be extended by government officials until 5 May. Italian side, Benetton, are due to travel to Welsh club, Dragons, that weekend.
Italian authorities have already postponed Serie A and Europa League football matches and are considering holding more games behind closed doors.
That could become a discussion point around certain Pro14 fixtures, too, although the likelier scenario, for now, would be to use the remaining four free weekends in the calendar – St Patrick’s weekend, the first weekend in April and the first and third weekends in March – to deal with any potential backlog.
The top brass of Pro14 officialdom are in regular contact with the two Italian clubs as well as the Italian federation – yet there is a realisation the scale of this crisis goes way beyond rugby. If government officials issue orders, they will be followed.
Sport has already been hugely impacted on a worldwide scale with the postponement of a number of key events in different sports including:
- World indoor athletics championships
- Hong Kong and Tokyo Marathons
- Chinese soccer Superleague
- Golf’s China Open and four other tournaments
- Formula 1 Chinese Grand Prix
- Women’s Six Nations between Italy and Scotland
- Hong Kong Sevens and Singapore Sevens
Football’s European championships are scheduled for June in 12 different countries – including Ireland and Italy.
If the department of health are asking for a rugby game to be postponed now, it is hardly a stretch to think that they may make a similar appeal in June, if the coronavirus remains a major crisis, then.
“Football must follow the orders of the individual countries,” Michele Uva, a member of the Uefa executive committee, said in an interview with The Times. “The sporting path will only be closed if the situation gets worse.”
