Bok limbo ends as Rugby Championship shifts to Queensland

The Springboks will resume the defence of their Rugby Championship title with a clash against the Wallabies in Australia’s Gold Coast, Queensland, on September 12.

In limbo in Gqberha since Saturday’s match against Argentina, the Boks are set to arrive in Brisbane on Friday to start two weeks’ quarantine.

Rugby bosses confirmed on Wednesday that Australia’s Queensland state will host eight Rugby Championship Tests in double-headers over four weekends from September in a rejigged schedule.

This comes after new Covid-19 restrictions were instituted countrywide in Australia and New Zealand. Organisers weighed whether to move games to SA or Britain amid lockdowns and tightened travel curbs.

After securing approvals from Queensland officials, the partner rugby unions in governing body Sanzaar agreed unanimously to play in the largely coronavirus-free state, Rugby Australia boss Andy Marinos said.

“Everyone is on the same page, thankfully, and aligned to making sure this Rugby Championship is a success,” he said.

The agreement comes after friction between Australia and New Zealand in recent days over New Zealand Rugby’s decision to pull out of the August 28 Test against Australia in Perth citing concerns about the schedule.

Rugby Australia now hopes the Perth match will go ahead on the next weekend but is waiting for approval from authorities in Western Australia, which has effectively shut its border to arrivals from New Zealand.

“I’m hopeful we can get confirmation in the next 24 to 48 hours,” Marinos said.

The Gold Coast will host the third round of the Rugby Championship on September 12 and the sixth and final round on October 2. Brisbane stages round four at Lang Park on September 18, with Townsville holding round five on September 25.

The All Blacks play Argentina, while Australia faces SA in the first double-header on the Gold Coast.

The teams will undertake a two-week quarantine at a resort in southeast Queensland before playing under strict biosecurity protocols.

Organisers have had to rejig the schedule several times due to the shifting Covid-19 landscape, and the latest changes mean increased costs and a revenue hit.

“There’s without a doubt an impact because we’ve lost a huge opportunity in terms of the budgets and the P and L’s [profit and loss] presented for some of the games that would have taken place in New Zealand,” Marinos said.

“Our costs have increased, as we have expected with the quarantine and the additional requirements around that.”

The Boks lead the Rugby Championship table after winning back-to-back home matches against Argentina. New Zealand thrashed Australia 57-22 at Eden Park in the first round.

Rugby Championship schedule:

Round 3, Sept 12: New Zealand v Argentina and SA v Australia (Gold Coast)

Round 4, Sept 18: Argentina v New Zealand and Australia v SA (Brisbane)

Round 5, Sept 25: Australia v Argentina and New Zealand v SA (Townsville)

Round 6, Oct 2: Argentina v Australia and SA v New Zealand (Gold Coast)