Leinster Rugby has been refused permission to host a trial match with spectators next month by the Government.
The country’s leading rugby team were planning to bring 2,000 supporters into their RDS homeground for an upcoming Rainbow Cup match against Ulster on Friday May 14th.
The nighttime match would have seen four pods of 500 fans in separate sections of the stadium and antigen testing would have been used to monitor infections.
However, the Irish Mirror has learned that this proposal has been knocked back by the Department of Sport because it is just too early to allow mass gatherings like that.
A senior source told the Mirror that the proposed dates in May aren’t feasible, but that the hope is that trials could begin later in the summer.
She said: “we’re not in a position to do it in mid-May, but test events are likely to happen in the summer months for sport and spectators.”
Leinster fans and the club are bound to be disappointed after they presented a detailed plan to the Department of Sport last month.
However, sources in Government have also told the Mirror that it would not have been fair for other sports if Leinster Rugby were given a head start.
And that the fact that UEFA was not given a chance to run their Euros 2020 rescheduled games here in the Aviva with limited fans was another factor.
There looks like there will be trial matches at some stage during the summer and last month Leinster’s chief executive, Mick Dawson, explained how Leinster will be ready.
He said: “What we are offering the Government is a pilot test event that meets all the recommendations of the Rapid Testing Groups’ Report.
“This is an opportunity to show that matches with supporters are possible, under strict testing, supervision and management of course, and that there is a roadmap ahead that rugby and indeed all sports and events can follow.
“The lessons that we could all take from hosting such a trial match would be invaluable as the wider sports and entertainment industry looks to recover from the effects of the last 12 months and looks forward to a better and a brighter future when we can hope to resume some level of normality.
“At some stage we have to take those first steps, and we believe that we have a robust and safe plan in place that will allow us to do just that, and plan for the safe return of all supporters from the beginning of next season.”
