| Parliament has today voted in favour of the Government’s national lockdown proposals aimed at curbing the increase in Covid-19 cases in England, which take effect from tomorrow (Thursday 5 November) until Wednesday 2 December. In addition, the Government has announced the cessation of all community team sports during this period, which applies to Age Grade and Adult rugby activities below Championship and Premier 15s. With effect from tomorrow, we return to Stage A on the Return to Community Rugby Roadmap. This means that no competitive or formal rugby activities can be undertaken until at least Wednesday 2 December. While group training sessions are banned, a maximum of two players can participate in socially distanced (two metres plus), individual training sessions outside without sharing equipment. We will now review what the implications of this national lockdown plan mean for clubhouses, schools, colleges, universities, etc., and will provide more detailed information in the Covid-19 Community Game Update tomorrow. In addition, we would like to advise that the RFU Competitions Team is working with the Competitions Organising Committees for Men and Women to finalise alternative competitions models in place of the cancelled 2020/21 league programme. These will be entirely optional for clubs and will have no impact on promotion/relegation. They will focus on local cluster leagues and offer a framework for clubs to Return to Play (in some format once we have government approval to do so). It is intended to circulate these proposals, inviting clubs to participate, on Friday 13 November. |
RFU Update 3rd November
| We recognise that Tuesday is club training night and are therefore issuing our weekly communication earlier than usual today on one topic only. Following the Prime Minister’s announcement of a national lockdown last Saturday, we continue to speak regularly to the Government to seek clarification on what the national lockdown restrictions, coming into force on Thursday 5 November until Wednesday 2 December, mean for community rugby. We recognise that there is significant speculation circulating regarding potential outcomes. However, we currently do not know what the precise implications of these restrictions are. We expect to issue a further communication as soon as we receive a further update, which is likely to arrive over the next 24-36 hours, once the plans have been considered by Parliament tomorrow. Until the Government issues a further announcement, we continue to be able to operate at Stage D on the Return to Community Rugby Roadmap and, therefore, usual Tuesday night training sessions can take place today. Clubs impacted by local tier 2 and tier 3 restrictions should follow any local authority guidance that is in place for their venues. You can find out more on the link below. Given the current situation, today’s edition of the Covid-19 Community Game Update will be issued later this week. |
| Local Guidance |
A message from CRFU Chairman Dave Saunter
Following the RFU announcement yesterday I wanted to re-iterate what the CRFU Management Board have been doing behind the scenes.
We have been led to believe that if the go ahead is given by the Government to play, RFU will sort out fixtures. Our question would be: “Is this in the interest of our Cornish clubs, if not what do we offer as an alternative?”
We have already started to put together return to play merit tables and once we have had a chat with Competitions committee we will come back to you with a structure, which you will either welcome or we can tweak.
Our priority is still to have 28 Cornish clubs playing rugby when we return to normality. In the meantime if you have embraced ready for rugby, keep up the good work.
I’ll be in touch again next week with an update.
Also be assured that I am in contact with Steve Grainger, RFU Rugby Development Director on both the phone and by e mail. I did suggest to him that perhaps we could be used as a pilot using the laws the ladies are using in the Allianz Prem, he was going to carry that forward ……..We are trying to cover all bases. In the meanwhile stay safe and fit.
Saunts
RFU cancels adult competitive leagues for the 2020/21 season
The RFU Council has made the difficult decision to cancel the Adult Competitive Leagues (Level 3 and below for Men, Level 2 and below for Women) for the 2020/21 season.
We believe that, even if a return to full contact rugby becomes possible, playing a meaningful competitive league season resulting in promotion and relegation is no longer feasible.
Given the Government’s additional restrictions to curb the increase in COVID-19 cases in locations across the country, and growing concerns around travelling significant distances outside immediate localities to fulfil fixtures due to increased risk of transmission, the decision has been made now so we can provide clubs with some certainty for the remainder of the season.
The Championship remains on course to start in January 2021, with this league subject to Government’s Elite Return to Play protocols.
What rugby can we play?
We have been in daily contact with Government about moving towards some form of contact rugby that will enable as many matches to take place as possible.
Steve Grainger, RFU Rugby Development Director, said:“We are very keen to see competitive rugby being played again and have been pushing extremely hard to accelerate a return to contact rugby. However, we also need to be realistic about the prevalence of COVID-19 cases in society and, given the introduction of further regional restrictions, we are working with Government to create alternative solutions.
“Progress has been made following productive conversations with DCMS and the Office of the Deputy Chief Medical Officer who have shown a willingness to work with the RFU to explore other available options.”
Sports Minister Nigel Huddleston said: “I know that today’s decision from the RFU will be disappointing to players and fans across the country however protecting people’s health is absolutely paramount. The government is continuing to work closely with the RFU on ways in which we can bring the competitive, community game back in some form ahead of a return to full contact as soon as the public health situation allows.”
Steve Grainger added: “While many people have looked forward to contact rugby returning, we are receiving more and more feedback from clubs and players that adaptations would be acceptable. There is an increasing appetite to play an adapted format of rugby rather than having no fixtures at all.
“We will do everything we can to enable the rugby community to return to contact play as soon as we can, but our priority is to keep players, coaches, referees and volunteers safe. We will provide an update to our community clubs as soon as we can. We would like to once again thank everyone for their incredible efforts in implementing the necessary changes and for their continued support in keeping formats of rugby going during this challenging season.”
For the current time we remain at Stage D on the Return to Community Rugby Roadmap.
RFU Community Game Update – 27th October
| Coronavirus (Covid-19) update In today’s edition, we provide advice and tips on Return4Rugby, Sport England funding and affected areas in the Covid-19 tier system and take the opportunity to look at the origins of ‘Swing Low, Sweet Chariot’. With regard to showing the Quilter Internationals 2020, part of the Autumn Nations Cup, Amazon has managed to secure a solution for pubs and clubs which we will be communicating with the game shortly once Amazon have finalised the detail. In the meantime, England v Ireland on Saturday 21 November will be shown on Channel 4, which will be available to any club who has a TV license. We will also be shortly announcing the broadcaster for both fixtures in the Women’s Autumn Internationals as England face France. We are constantly working with Government to return to rugby but, as a reminder, we are still at Stage D on the Roadmap, and RFU guidance, as well as Government Coronavirus (Covid-19) Guidelines, must be followed. Local restriction powers lie with their local authorities and clubs need to check the latest position, as restrictions may change frequently over the coming weeks. To access the full update click on the link Please visit our dedicated web portal on the England Rugby website to access coronavirus information and resources. Past editions of these weekly updates can be found on the website. |
RFU Community Game Update – 20th October
| Coronavirus (Covid-19) update In today’s edition we update on the restart of training courses for 2020/2021, highlight new Sport England Funding, affected areas in the Covid-19 tier system, wearing of gloves by players and guidance on fireworks. We are constantly working with Government to return to rugby but as a reminder that we are still at Stage D on the Roadmap, and RFU guidance, as well as Government Coronavirus (Covid-19) Guidelines, must be followed. Local restriction powers lie with their local authorities and clubs need to check the latest position, as restrictions may change frequently over the coming weeks. To access the update click on the link Please visit our dedicated web portal on the England Rugby website to access coronavirus information and resources. Past editions of these weekly updates can be found on the website. |
Community Game Update – October 2020.
| Content: |
| 1. Viewing the Quilter Internationals 2020, part of the Autumn Nations Cup 2. Show your club shirt at Twickenham 3. Changes to RFU Regulations 4. Response to World Rugby Transgender Guidence 5. Guidance on players wearing gloves 6. Allianz supporting the women’s game 7. Rugby Development team update 8. England Schools membership 2020-21 season 9. Nominate your club’s Unsung Hero in BBC Sports Personality of Year awards Welcome to the October 2020 Community Game Update. We hope you find the update useful, and if you have any feedback, queries or content that you would like to feature, please email Chris Dodd, Communications Executive (chrisdodd@rfu.com). Our communications to you are based on the data held in the Game Management System (GMS). To ensure you receive the communications that you want to from the RFU, please check the information held on this system is up to date and active. In addition, if you know of a colleague who should be receiving these updates, but isn’t, please help them to check their details on GMS. This communication is only sent to the roles highlighted in the distribution list above. Please share it with others in your club who need to see it. To access the rest of the update click on the link |
RFU Community Game Update – 6th Oct.
| Coronavirus (Covid-19) update |
| We have provided an update on the organisation structure of the Rugby Development team and guidance in respect of running half term rugby activities during the pandemic. Supporting the rugby community  We are pleased to provide an update regarding the Rugby Development team. As a result of financial impact of Covid-19 we’ve had to reshape this team to ensure we use the resource we have available as effective and efficiently as possible. Click the link below view the team’s organisation chart. We will provide more detailed information on what this means for community rugby next week. Organisation Chart To read the rest of the update click on the link Please visit our dedicated web portal on the England Rugby website to access coronavirus information and resources. Past editions of these weekly updates can be found on this part of the website. Click here to find a previous edition. |
GMS@RFU.COM – Email Address No Longer In Use
To report a Game Management System query you are required to use our new Help Portal at https://help.rfu.com and use the “Submit A Help Request” option. The email mailbox for gms@rfu.com is now no longer monitored and any email notifications will be automatically deleted.
Please be aware that the answers to many frequently asked questions can also be found on this site as well as information on future product releases and upcoming announcements on the Game Management System.
Kind Regards
GMS Service Desk
RFU Community Game Update, 29th Sept.
| Coronavirus (Covid-19) update We have launched a short survey to enable clubs to provide us with input regarding the broader financial impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on grassroots rugby. Awaiting link for the survey from RFU! We also remember Matt Ratana who gave tremendous service to the Metropolitan Police and to the game of rugby. To read the rest of the update click on the link. Please visit our dedicated web portal on the England Rugby website to access coronavirus information and updates here. Past editions of these weekly updates can be found on this part of the website. Click here if you need to find a previous edition. |
