Premiership Rugby under fire again after refusing to release players for Lions 'home' warm-up fixture against Japan
Premiership Rugby is coming under mounting pressure to reconsider its board’s decision to prevent players taking part in the historic British and Irish Lions “home” match against Japan at Murrayfield next June ahead of the tour of South Africa.
The Lions on Wednesday confirmed they would face the 2019 World Cup hosts on June 26 – the same day as the Premiership final – in the first “home” Lions match since the fixture against Argentina in Cardiff in 2005, and only the fourth ever.
Warren Gatland, the Lions head coach, views the fixture as an important opportunity to fast-track preparations for the three-Test series against the Springboks, given that the tour has already been shortened by two games from the tour of New Zealand in 2017.
The Lions want a home fixture in order to raise enough funds to persuade Premiership Rugby to bring forward the date of its final by a week to allow Gatland’s squad extra preparation time before leaving the UK.
However, despite a series of offers from the Lions, including compensation and also moving the dates of the tour, the Premiership has refused to move its final and reiterated that its players would not be released to take part in the fixture – even if they were not involved in the final – as the match falls outside World Rugby’s regulation nine, which governs player release for internationals.
PRL is understood to have refused to consider bringing forward the final by a week because it would have clashed with Royal Ascot while a delayed start to the Lions tour was rejected because of the impact it would have on the following season.
Ben Calveley, the Lions managing director, on Wednesday urged the Premiership to reconsider its position, which is thought also to prevent any involvement of Saracens players, even though they will be in the Championship next season.
“The position right now is that there is no sanctioning of English players to play in this fixture, but we would be keen to keep that dialogue open and we would be hopeful that position might change,” Calveley said. “It is a wonderful opportunity for players, not just to play in that fixture but also to put their hand up and start to impress Warren and his coaching team in advance of the tour of South Africa.
How previous Lions squads have looked
“We are open to continuing dialogue but at the moment, this is a non-regulation nine fixture. We understand that, and respect their position, but we would of course be hopeful those players not playing in the final would be available to play in this match, although that would require a change to the position.”
It is expected the match will raise about £5 million, if crowds are allowed to attend by then, to cover a significant part of the £18m for the eight-game, six-week tour but also allow the Lions to offer the Premiership a seven-figure payout.
It is understood that a number of Premiership clubs are thought to be keen to strike a deal, given the financial pressures caused by Covid-19.
“Also, are we really going to say to a player he is not allowed to play for the Lions if our league campaign is finished?” one club source said.
“The reality is the Lions is unique, not just in rugby but in sporting terms,” said Calveley, who remains confident the tour will go ahead despite the uncertainty caused by the pandemic.
“It’s the absolute pinnacle for the players and the fans love it more than any other sporting property in the UK and Ireland. The game understands that it needs to protect these blockbuster events.”
Premiership Rugby said only that it had not released players for matches that fall outside of regulation nine for more than 10 years, and that the clubs had made the board policy.
