Omar Hassanein, chief executive of the International Rugby Players’ Association has criticised the decision of the Welsh Rugby Union to schedule an unprecedented match with Scotland during the 2018 Autumn International tests.
In an interview with the Telegraph, Hassanein said:
“There wasn’t enough consultation with the coaches, players and whatnot, as we understand. Also, is that particular game giving any additional value? We don’t endorse ever-expanding seasons at any point, but it would be better to see a northern hemisphere team play a southern hemisphere team to bring a different set of elements to things. It sounds like a commercially driven decision and that is concerning.”
Beyond player safety and welfare, he went on to say that the Six Nations was at risk of being undermined if international teams started to play each other more than just once a year.
With injuries stacking up for teams involved in the Six Nations, Hassanein sees the overlapping of safety concerns in the game, with commercial concerns.
“The commercial interests of the game and the player-welfare interests of the game sometimes align and sometimes pull against each other – and, at the moment, they seem the be pulling against each other more than ever,”
The Six Nations begins on Saturday February 3. Read our preview here!
