Rugby-Merry Christmas? New Zealand see little cheer in Rugby Championship schedule

SANZAAR, the joint venture between the southern hemisphere's rugby powers Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Argentina, said it would look at "different options" to try to appease NZR but stood by the schedule. "The 12th of December is an issue for New Zealand but we’ve exhausted every other option," SANZAAR CEO Andy Marinos told reporters in Sydney.

New Zealand Rugby has broken ranks with its southern hemisphere partners and demanded a change to the Rugby Championship schedule in Australia, complaining that the All Blacks will be forced to spend Christmas in quarantine upon arriving home. The All Blacks play their final match of the six-week tournament against Australia in Sydney on Dec. 12 and would need to isolate for two weeks on their return to New Zealand as part of COVID-19 protocols.

Minutes after governing body SANZAAR released the schedule on Thursday, New Zealand Rugby (NZR) issued a statement condemning it and suggested "commercial considerations" had trumped the "wellbeing" of its people. NZR Chief Executive Mark Robinson said his federation had planned for the All Blacks' last match to be Dec. 5 to give the team "time to get home, undertake the 14 days' quarantine .... and then be with their families for Christmas, as will be the case for the other three teams in the tournament."

"We haven't agreed to this schedule and are disappointed at the announcement," he added. "We will now work through the issues with Rugby Australia and SANZAAR and believe that there are other solutions within the Rugby Championship window."

With the COVID-19 pandemic limiting international travel, Australia was awarded sole hosting rights by SANZAAR two weeks ago in a major disappointment for New Zealand, which was nominated as the tournament's preferred host mid-year. SANZAAR, the joint venture between the southern hemisphere's rugby powers Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Argentina, said it would look at "different options" to try to appease NZR but stood by the schedule.

"The 12th of December is an issue for New Zealand but we’ve exhausted every other option," SANZAAR CEO Andy Marinos told reporters in Sydney. "The reality is we’re asking players to play six test matches in six weeks (which) is pretty arduous as it is.

"We’ve got to be cognisant of player welfare but there’s also player safety." The tournament, featuring six rounds of double-headers, kicks off with world champions South Africa playing Argentina and the Wallabies playing the All Blacks at Brisbane's Lang Park on Nov 7.

The fourth round will be held in the port city of Newcastle, with the other rounds in Sydney. The Australia-New Zealand tests double as matches in the annual Bledisloe Cup series contested between the trans-Tasman nations. New Zealand host the first two Bledisloe tests on Oct. 11 and 18.

In recent months, NZR has been at loggerheads with SANZAAR partners, especially Australia, over the future of Super Rugby, but Robinson said his federation remained "firmly committed" to the joint venture. Fixtures:

Round One - Saturday Nov 7, Lang Park, Brisbane Argentina v South Africa

Australia v New Zealand Round Two - Saturday Nov 14, Western Sydney Stadium, Sydney

New Zealand v Argentina South Africa v Australia

Round Three - Saturday Nov 21, Stadium Australia, Sydney New Zealand v South Africa

Australia v Argentina Round Four – Saturday Nov 28, Newcastle International Sports Centre, Newcastle

Argentina v Australia South Africa v New Zealand

Round Five – Saturday Dec 5, Western Sydney Stadium, Sydney Argentina v New Zealand

Australia v South Africa Round Six – Saturday Dec 12, Stadium Australia, Sydney

South Africa v Argentina Australia v New Zealand