The big dogs in South African rugby held a meeting yesterday to discuss Plan B for the Rainbow Cup.
Widespread reports suggested that the tournament which includes South Africa’s Stormers, Lions, Sharks and Bulls as well as clubs from Ireland, Scotland, Italy and Wales would be cancelled or postponed, but no such statement was forthcoming from the South African Rugby Union (Saru) last night.
It is understood that a failure to gain permission from the UK and Ireland governments for the visit of the South Africans is the stumbling block that at this point cannot be hurdled.
Amongst the uncertainty, though, coach John Dobson’s Stormers are preparing for business as usual – hosting the Sharks in the tournament opener at Cape Town Stadium on Friday.
Dobson said yesterday: “I know there’s going to be some serious rugby between now and the British and Irish Lions [series]. There’s a meeting this afternoon about the exact format of the competition.
“We just finished a full-on training session for Friday night.”
While dealing with off-field uncertainty, the Stormers also don’t know if they will have the services of Springboks Bongi Mbonambi and Pieter-Steph du Toit beyond this season.
With the duo’s contracts expiring in October, Dobson says: “They haven’t said yes, they haven’t said no. The windows are still wide open and their offers haven’t expired.
“We’re taking into account one player’s personal circumstances, family situation which will have an impact on his decision. I’ve got no doubt that if we play on Friday they will be absolutely exceptional – entirely committed to the cause.”