ULSTER HAVE BEEN awarded a 28-0 victory and thus all five points with confirmation that their postponed EPCR Challenge Cup match against the Toyota Cheetahs has now been officially cancelled.
Ulster’s clash with the Cheetahs was initially scheduled to be played in Amsterdam on Saturday, but on Friday was postponed by 24 hours and moved to a smaller Dutch venue further south owing to forecasts for heavy snowfall and freezing temperatures in the Dutch capital.
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The new pitch was designated as Duke Rugby Club in the more southern city of s-Hertogenbosch, a much smaller venue and was thus supposed to go ahead behind closed doors at 2pm local time today. But despite locals’ efforts to get the game on, it was postponed an hour before kick off following a referees’ pitch inspection.
Following discussions between both teams and tournament organisers, EPCR, a statement on Sunday night announced that the game could not be played and was thus cancelled. Consistent with competition rules, the match was forfeited by the home side, and so Ulster are awarded the maximum points.
“Despite the obvious challenges connected with the playing of this fixture, and noting the incredible efforts of the Toyota Cheetahs and Rugby Nederland to ensure the fixture could take place, it is the hosting club’s responsibility to ensure the match can go ahead; and therefore the match result must be recorded as a 0-28 four-try bonus point win for Ulster Rugby, with five match points being awarded as a consequence, pursuant to EPCR regulations”, the tournament organiser said in a statement.
“EPCR would like to thank Toyota Cheetahs, Rugby Nederland and Ulster Rugby for their support throughout this process.”
“We acknowledge this outcome comes in difficult circumstances and reiterate our thanks to the supporters for their understanding and dedication”, added Ulster. “We will share further updates in due course.”
The decision means Ulster have confirmed qualification for the last-16 of the Challenge Cup ahead of their final pool game against Stade Francais next weekend.
The Cheetahs were invited to play in this season’s Challenge Cup, though agreed to play their home games in Amsterdam to reduce travel costs.
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Ulster awarded 28-0 win as postponed Cheetahs game is officially cancelled
ULSTER HAVE BEEN awarded a 28-0 victory and thus all five points with confirmation that their postponed EPCR Challenge Cup match against the Toyota Cheetahs has now been officially cancelled.
Ulster’s clash with the Cheetahs was initially scheduled to be played in Amsterdam on Saturday, but on Friday was postponed by 24 hours and moved to a smaller Dutch venue further south owing to forecasts for heavy snowfall and freezing temperatures in the Dutch capital.
The new pitch was designated as Duke Rugby Club in the more southern city of s-Hertogenbosch, a much smaller venue and was thus supposed to go ahead behind closed doors at 2pm local time today. But despite locals’ efforts to get the game on, it was postponed an hour before kick off following a referees’ pitch inspection.
Following discussions between both teams and tournament organisers, EPCR, a statement on Sunday night announced that the game could not be played and was thus cancelled. Consistent with competition rules, the match was forfeited by the home side, and so Ulster are awarded the maximum points.
“Despite the obvious challenges connected with the playing of this fixture, and noting the incredible efforts of the Toyota Cheetahs and Rugby Nederland to ensure the fixture could take place, it is the hosting club’s responsibility to ensure the match can go ahead; and therefore the match result must be recorded as a 0-28 four-try bonus point win for Ulster Rugby, with five match points being awarded as a consequence, pursuant to EPCR regulations”, the tournament organiser said in a statement.
“EPCR would like to thank Toyota Cheetahs, Rugby Nederland and Ulster Rugby for their support throughout this process.”
“We acknowledge this outcome comes in difficult circumstances and reiterate our thanks to the supporters for their understanding and dedication”, added Ulster. “We will share further updates in due course.”
The decision means Ulster have confirmed qualification for the last-16 of the Challenge Cup ahead of their final pool game against Stade Francais next weekend.
The Cheetahs were invited to play in this season’s Challenge Cup, though agreed to play their home games in Amsterdam to reduce travel costs.
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Challenge Cup cheetahs Ulster weekend in amsterdam