Scarlets have forfeited Saturday’s European Champions Cup match against Bristol Bears with 32 players set to come out of COVID quarantine only a day before the game, the Welsh rugby side said on Tuesday.
Scarlet have only 14 fit players, including seven players from their developmental squad, with the rest undergoing a 10-day quarantine in Belfast after returning from South Africa, where they were due to play in the United Rugby Championship.
The team was sent back home amid concerns over the Omicron variant of the coronavirus and had urged Champions Cup organisers European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR) to reschedule the game.
“Following discussions… the overwhelming feeling was that it would be a physical risk to select any of the 32 front-line squad members who are currently in quarantine in a hotel outside of Belfast,” Scarlets said in a statement.
EPCR said the game has been cancelled and under its regulations, a 28-0 result was declared and five match points were awarded to Bristol.
“EPCR acknowledges the unfortunate circumstances which have impacted on Scarlets’ players and staff through no fault of their own,” it said.
“Awarding the match to Bristol Bears is a tournament management measure with the objective of ensuring that all fixtures in the 2021/22 Heineken Champions Cup are accounted for.”
(Reporting by Manasi Pathak in Bengaluru; Editing by Rohith Nair)
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