Cardiff’s stranded rugby players were last night thrown a lifeline with the promise of a flight out of South Africa and quarantine accommodation in England.
The announcement by club chiefs came after it emerged the Blue and Blacks’ travelling contingent were becoming “extremely anxious” at being stuck in Covid chaos in Cape Town.
Dai Young’s squad, minus the two players that tested positive who must complete their 10-day quarantine in a South African Covid-19 hotel, have been booked onto a charter flight tomorrow morning, pending results from a final round of testing.
Upon arrival in England they will serve their 10-day period of isolation in an official Covid hotel, the Welsh Government having told them it was not possible to do so back in the principality.
The news comes as a major relief to all concerned after a source close to the squad revealed earlier that “everyone is extremely anxious and helpless.
“There are people with pre-existing conditions which isn’t being helped by isolation,” the source added.
The downbeat mood was not improved by Eluned Morgan, the Welsh Government’s Minister for Health and Social Services, saying “They [Cardiff] will have to come home in the same way that everybody else in this country would be expected to come home.
“Our primary responsibility is to keep the people of Wales safe. There are rules in place to make sure that happens and there will be no exceptions to that.”
That provoked an angry response from inside the Cardiff camp with Mike Brown, the club's head of communications and marketing, tweeting: "As someone caught in the middle of this I was blown away by the lack of empathy and support from the Health Minister.
"Everyone expects to quarantine upon our return. Help us get home."
Irish club Munster are also caught up in the Covid chaos in South Africa after revealing that nine more of their players have tested positive.
Their scheduled European Cup opener at Wasps on Sunday week is now very much in doubt.
World Cup winning Springbok, Duane Vermeulen, has been forced to delay his arrival at new club Ulster after testing positive and being forced to self-isolate.
