Attn - All participants of the 2020 Positive Rugby Foundation NSW Junior State Champs & the Rugby 1st Girls NSWJRU State Champs

As all of Community Rugby (and all sport for that matter) is blatantly aware, the impact of the COVID-19 virus on our regular season has been unbelievable and something I don't think anyone has seen since the days of the Great Wars.

With the escalation in the COVID-19 situation to Phase I, Phase II and the likelihood of Phase III being implemented, the NSW Juniors committee considers it prudent that we consider all the implications of this new environment and the effects it has on our stakeholders.

As such, it is with regret that we have come to the decision to cancel the 2020 Positive Rugby Foundation NSW Junior State Championships & the Rugby 1st Girls NSWJRU State Champs which were scheduled for the June long weekend (6th-8th June).

**Note - We have not yet cancelled the Positive Rugby Foundation NSW U10/U11 State Gala which is scheduled for 18th-19th July.  We aim to give you a further update regarding this tournament by the middle of April.

We need to be cognisant that the safety of all our players and officials is paramount, plus our Zones and Districts need ample time to cancel or defer travel and accommodation arrangements and obtain refunds or credits where they can. Also the travel restrictions will severely impact our interstate teams. We also have to look after our host clubs and venues in their planning - as well as the councils that support these events. So as to give all our stakeholders some confidence and certainty in an environment (when neither is in ample supply) we have made the call to cancel the State Champs.

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This decision is in line with these other cancellations

• NSW Country Juniors Country Champs
• NSW Country Champs (seniors)
• ASRU Schools Championships (Riverview)

 
• Plus the following RA High Performance pathway activities will not proceed as scheduled:   
• All Academy/U18 games set down for June and July
• The Super W U18s – set down for July 6-9
• The Australian Schools/U18s training camp - set down for July 1-5
• The u20 Junior World Championships and Oceania U20 Championships have been cancelled

Once we have more information about WHEN or IF rugby will be back on the park in 2020, we can then make decisions about if it is feasible to run the event at a later date. But that decision cannot be made until we have more information on the effects of the COVID-19 situation.

We'd like to take this opportunity to thank all our host clubs (Central Coast Juniors, Camden Rugby, Dubbo Roos, Orange Emus Rugby, Orange City Rugby, West Harbour Juniors, Narrabeen Tigers & Hunters Hill Rugby), host councils (Central Coast Council, Orange City Council, Dubbo Regional Council) and our sponsors (Genesis Proprietary Trading, Estilo Travel, Rugby 1st & the NSW Positive Rugby Foundation) - we hope to see you all back in 2021.

Very tough times - please stay safe and look after each other. Rugby communities are strong and supportive and we will be back on the field at some stage.

Ben Gregory

President NSWJRU

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