Rugby Australia (RA) has moved the first of the Wallabies' Test against France from Sydney to Brisbane due to the worsening COVID-19 situation in the New South Wales capital.
The opening Test was to be played at the SCG on July 7 but given Greater Sydney has been placed in lockdown until July 9, RA decided to shift the match to Lang Park.
“It’s never an easy decision to move a fixture … one thing that the COVID-19 pandemic has taught us is that we have to be able to pivot quickly," RA chief executive Andy Marinos said in a statement.
“Following the [lockdown] announcement yesterday, we were faced with yet another challenge and we knew we had to respond swiftly."
The second Test is scheduled for Melbourne on July 13 and the third back in Brisbane on July 17.
RA also announced the Wallaroos' two-Test series against Samoa has been postponed until later this year.
Meanwhile, the Western Force's women's team have pulled out of the Super W rugby competition after just one round due to Sydney's COVID-19 outbreak.
The Force drew 17-17 with the President's XV in their season opener last week and were due to take on the Waratahs in Coffs Harbour this afternoon.
But that match has now been cancelled after the Force made the decision to abandon the competition due to safety fears.
The Force will now return to Perth, which imposed its own restrictions after a COVID-19 scare in Western Australia.
Force players will have to complete two weeks of quarantine on arriving back in Perth.
This year's six-team Super W competition reverted to a pool format due to coronavirus complexities, with each of the two groups featuring three teams.
The original schedule was for three rounds to be played before finals.
An update to the competition fixtures and format will be announced in the coming days.
ABC/AAP
