South Africa have not let the uncertainty over the future of this year’s Rugby Championship, sparked by New Zealand’s stricter COVID-19 regulations, affect them ahead of Saturday’s second clash against Argentina.
The two teams, who meet at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium for a rematch after the Boks won the first Test 32-12, were due to share a charter flight to Australia on Sunday for the next leg of the competition.
However, organisers are now scrambling for an alternative venue to complete the championship after New Zealand said on Friday they would not host the Springboks next month, or travel to play in Australia next week.
New Zealand Rugby (NZR) said authorities had advised that the Boks would not be permitted to enter New Zealand for Tests in Dunedin on Sept. 25 and Auckland on Oct. 2 after their government imposed stricter COVID-19 travel regulations.
Reports suggest the remainder of the competition could be played in the United Kingdom, while South African Rugby has also offered to host all four sides.
Springboks captain Siya Kolisi told the media that his team were willing to do whatever it took to complete their fixtures, and all they wanted to do was play rugby after a year of no action due to COVID-19.
He said the preference of the squad would be to stay in South Africa, but added they will go wherever the matches are.
“There are two teams here already. We would love to stay here and play, but we will also play anywhere,” Kolisi said.
The Boks did not play a Test between winning the Rugby World Cup in Japan in November 2019 and a fixture against Georgia 20 months later, due to the pandemic.
Kolisi said the squad’s desire to be back on the pitch overrides any long quarantine concerns they may have.
“We missed a whole year of rugby, so at this moment we will do anything to continue playing. We don’t know what will happen with this virus in the future, so we are appreciating the time we have,” he said.
“We are in a very privileged position. In this time when people are losing so much, including their jobs, we are still able to play. We can’t make excuses and complain.”