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England could host 'festival of rugby' featuring the champions and hosts of last year's RWC - but no All Blacks
By Online Editors
The Springboks and Japan could be involved in a unique tournament in England in November.
A proposed ‘festival of rugby’ tournament is one of the options being put forward if the scheduled end-of-year internationals cannot go ahead.
According to the Daily Mail, the Six Nations teams could be joined by world champions South Africa and Japan in London in a one-off event to help boost Rugby Union’s finances which have taken a knock due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The tournament could be structured with two pools of four countries, “with the possibility of round-robin fixtures and a final taking place at Twickenham”.
After last year's successful World Cup, there's plenty of talk regarding whether Japan's future lies with the European powerhouses in the Six Nations or with the four Rugby Championship nations.
There's also been plenty of talk throughout recent history concerning South Africa's place in the Rugby Championship as well as Super Rugby, given the geographical challenges.
The other option being considered if the normal end-of-year Tests cannot happen is a home and away Six Nations which would start in November and be continued in February and March.
Rugby Football Union chief executive Bill Sweeney said contingency plans are being drawn up for any eventuality.
“There’s another option of possibly bringing in additional invitational sides,” said Sweeney.
“It’s an opportunity to be creative and maybe create some type of festival of rugby.”
The so-called festival of rugby could give fans a glimpse of what the future of the traditional Northern Hemisphere competition could look like - but it leaves New Zealand, Australia, Argentina and the Pacific Island sides on the outer.
The All Blacks and Wallabies are set to contest a four-match Bledisloe Cup series later in the year but Argentina will be lacking in serious competition for the remainder of 2020.
- with Rugby365
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Latest Comments
Im guessing you never lived in NZ under r dern and red commie labour
We were forced and in some cases mandated to take the V - I know of 7 people who D taking it and many with untold injuries - Minimium 12 K D in NZ taking it - it was never safe never effective never worked just Maimed and K'd qe were close to being thrown into quarantine camps C was only a rebranded Flu
Oz Govt MOH have completed their c commission - they admit they never had the proveable data to make justify their statements and decisions & that the public will never accept it ever happening again - they fired rubber B into peaceful protestors Ardern is hated here ( 1 M patriots forced her out ) - bloomfield her side kick 2IC dr D excempted 11k from taking it - we (not u) know who they were the Pol and Public servants who knew they were fatal - A zeneca pulled it off the market due 2 excess D's - Japan banned them - called them stupid poison -
P M Shinzo Abe opposed the v and sent over a million doses back - because of that he was murdered - So were the heads of several African nations who also opposed the fake v they were k'd and their replacements allowed their countries to be swamped with them - C was V wasnt bought in fo C - C was bought in for the V
Im not here to talk politics but if u want to I can all day especially to a RED neck commie like you - whats it going to be Rugby or Politics or mud slinging give me something to think about - surprise me with something meaty - just not word salad
Go to commentsIt doesn’t matter how good your rugby team is, at the highest level you are going to have momentum swings in games.
Wales having a good ten minute period next week- and they will- doesn’t mean the Boks will be playing poorly.
It’s if you can make the most of it when you have the momentum. And the current group of springboks do enough when they create enough, as great teams do.
For comparison, the All Blacks played their best game of the year against France.
Still lost. And it’s only France’s second game so they aren’t firing at 100% yet.
The ABs haven’t got to that ruthless stage that the springboks are at yet.
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