Covid-19 has final say on Stormers vs Lions match

THE final regular season match for the Stormers and the Lions in the Rainbow Cup South Africa has been cancelled due to positive results for Covid-19 appearing in the Johannesburg-based team, SA Rugby confirmed yesterday.

The match was scheduled to be played today at 4pm at Cape Town Stadium, but will now not go ahead. The decision was taken as part of prescribed precautions advised by the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) to limit the risk of further infection in the rugby community and was triggered yesterday following receipt of positive results from scheduled testing of the Lions squad.

The Cape-based side will be awarded four points, as determined by the competition rules, which will propel the Stormers to second in the standings with 17 points, one point above the Sharks who’ll face the Bulls today at Kings Park in the tournament decider. The Lions will, therefore, finish bottom of the log with eight points, having won only one match – a 34-33 victory over the Bulls earlier this month.

“The Emirates Lions have followed all protocols and taken all the appropriate steps,” said Jurie Roux, chief executive of SA Rugby. “While the cancellation is unfortunate, their approach ensures that the risk of cancellation of their match against the British & Irish Lions in the Castle Lager Lions Series on July 3 is well managed.”

Both teams will now switch over to concentrating on the Currie Cup, which starts next weekend, with the Lions hoping that no further infection will spread across the team that will have an impact on that game. They are scheduled to face the Pumas on Friday, while the Western Province open their domestic cup account against old foes, the Bulls, on Saturday.