Super Rugby AU

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Super Rugby AU confirms 3 July kick off date

The Super Rugby AU competition will start on 3 July it was announced Tuesday, after an agreement was reached with the sport’s main broadcaster.

Super Rugby AU

Latest sports news

Australia’s domestic Super Rugby replacement competition will start on 3 July 2020 it was announced this week. 

This comes after an agreement was reached between Rugby Australia the sport’s main broadcaster in the country. 

Super Rugby AU confirms 3 July restart 

“The five-team competition, which features the four Australian Super Rugby teams plus the Western Force, will kick off on 3 July and will be contested over 12 consecutive weekends,” Rugby Australia said in a statement.

Rugby Australia

The points earned by the Super Rugby franchise’s before the Southern Hemisphere showcase shut down will count for nothing in the new event.

In the opening round of action the four teams that took part in the 2020 Super Rugby campaign will kick off the stop-gap event designed to stave off massive losses incurred by the cancellation of the term. 

The Super Rugby AU season will kick off with all five teams on zero points when the Queensland Reds host fierce rivals the New South Wales Waratahs in Brisbane. The ACT Brumbies will play the Melbourne Rebels the following night, 4 July in Canberra. 

Queensland’s Reds had yet to meet their bitter rivals the New South Wales Waratahs with the Brumbies the only Australian opposition they faced. That meeting came in week one of the competition and saw the Brumbies squeak a 27-24 win.

The Brumbies had topped the Australian conference rounding off with a seventh round drubbing of the Waratahs before the season came to a halt.

The Force return

The Perth-based Western Force will have to wait a week before being welcomed back from their two-year Super Rugby exile as they have an opening-round bye.

The original 15-team season across five countries was brought to a halt after seven rounds because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Australia ready for Super Rugby

But with Australia seeing only a handful of cases in the last week, restrictions are being relaxed and sports are resuming.

The National Rugby League started at the end of May and Australian Rules football will get back into action on Thursday.

Super Rugby will begin in New Zealand at the weekend with a domestic “Aotearoa” competition with full crowds after local COVID-19 cases were eradicated.

Rugby Australia had been in tense talks with Fox Sports about broadcasting the rest of this season and beyond.

Rugby Australia CEO Rob Clarke has pledged innovation and “a new brand of rugby.” 

Fox has held broadcast rights for 25 years, but it is not clear that deal will continue beyond 2020 placing Australian rugby in a pickle.