Disarray over new Six Nations dates

By DAVID LLEWELLYN

England could be forced to travel to Dublin for their potentially decisive Six Nations' meeting against Ireland without the core of their first-choice side after the latest farcical sequence of events to affect the game unravelled yesterday.

The dispute in this case involves the Six Nations committee and the Rugby Football Union, after the former of the two bodies confirmed that the alternative dates for Ireland's rescheduled matches, postponed because of the foot-and-mouth epidemic, would be the weekends of 5-6 and 12-13 May.

The RFU had suggested that 19 and 26 May would be preferable, to help avoid bringing a club-versus-country issue to a head. Sadly it now looks as though England will travel to Dublin on 5 May without their leading players, since they will be involved in the Zurich Premiership play-offs with their clubs. That, of course, will devalue the tournament.

Roger Pickering, the Six Nations chief executive, held a telephone conference call yesterday with the representatives of the various unions and said: "Everybody is flexible, but the difficulty is in trying to take a clear view in an uncertain situation." He would not confirm that the RFU's dates had been rejected, merely saying that a statement could be issued in the next 48 hours.

But the longer the foot-and-mouth epidemic continues, the more it could help, because the Irish Government's 30-day exclusion, which at the moment applies only to the United Kingdom, means that in another three weeks or so the RFU's preferred dates will have to be reconsidered since the Six Nations' options will have been swallowed up.

But if the epidemic continues then it will all be too late because the Lions party assembles around 25 May, in preparation for the tour to Australia in June, thus ruling out a summer finish to the tournament.

Terry Burwell, the RFU's operations director, was asked about the possibility of a spill over into next season. He replied: "We want to avoid that." However, he then went on to admit that there was a two-week period in October before the autumn internationals when they could play any outstanding Tests.

In desperation yesterday Twickenham did suggest neutral venues for the postponed Ireland matches. Paris had been given serious consideration, but that possibility receded yesterday with news of the first confirmed case of the disease in north-west France, leaving Rome as the only credible remaining alternative. However, that was apparently rejected out of hand by the powers that be.

But the Six Nations were not alone in turning down suggestions. Twickenham is doing its fair share of that, the latest being the idea of playing the final round of Premiership matches, scheduled for Easter, on 24 March, which is free because of the postponement of the Ireland v England match.

Burwell said: "That is not going to happen because of the financial implications to the clubs." The fear being that sponsors, advertisers and broadcasters would have set plans in concrete for the Easter weekend and Leicester had no doubt mapped out a monster party to celebrate the winning of the title. So on that day and in the middle of some terrible fixture congestion, there are presently two matches scheduled.

The organisers of the Heineken Cup, ERC Ltd, had indicated their willingness to move the final back a week to 26 May, but that did not suit a French broadcasting company so that remains where it was on 19 May.

But amid all this, and despite that one confirmed case of foot and mouth, the match between France and Wales is still expected to go ahead in Paris this weekend.

"A match like the France versus Wales game won't affect the situation much," said the French agriculture minister, Jean Glavany. Fans travelling to France to see the match represented "barely 10 per cent of the daily influx at the border," he added.

Glavany said 7,000 to 8,000 Welsh fans were expected for Saturday's game, whereas 60,000 to 70,000 people crossed from Britain to France every day. But people arriving in France would be asked to rub their shoes in disinfectant and the wheels of their vehicles would also be treated.

- INDEPENDENT