Dai Young, the Wasps director of rugby, said his side’s ‘unfair’ fixture congestion puts them at a disadvantage in the Champions Cup and has urged administrators to end five-day turnarounds
Dai Young, the Wasps director of rugby, has claimed his side’s “unfair” fixture congestion puts them at a disadvantage in the Champions Cup and has urged administrators to bring an end to five-day turnarounds.
The injury-hit Wasps begin their Champions Cup campaign at Ulster on Friday, having lost away against Saracens on Sunday. With Monday spent as a recovery day and the squad due to travel on Thursday, they will have had only two full training days to prepare – two fewer than in a seven-day turnaround.
Mark McCall, the Saracens director of rugby, has expressed his sympathy for Wasps, who have lost their past four matches, on Sunday describing the turnaround as “grossly unfair” and Young conceded that the two-times Heineken Cup winners begin their European campaign with one hand tied behind their backs.
“Is it unfair? Yes it is. You can’t say it is not with [Ulster] having seven days and us five,” he said. “It’s not ideal, it’s not fair and it has obviously put us at a disadvantage. We have to deal with it, go there and give it our best shot but I believe our best shot can be enough.”
In the face of criticism this week European Professional Club Rugby, the governing body that organises the Champions Cup, has robustly defended its fixture list. The Champions Cup fixtures were not released until 22 August, six weeks after the Premiership had announced its plans to schedule Saracens v Wasps for last Sunday. However, EPCR has privately questioned why a Premiership match featuring two teams in the Champions Cup was arranged for the Sunday before the start of the European competitions.
