North v South match could be played in Wellington

New Zealand Rugby (NZR) has announced it is continuing to work on contingency plans for the North v South match on Saturday, August 29.

The squads for the game, which will be unveiled on Tuesday, will now assemble in Wellington instead of Auckland to prepare for the special fixture.

NZR General Manager Professional Rugby & Performance Chris Lendrum said NZR was still hoping that the match could be played at Eden Park, but was also making contingency plans to play the match at SKY Stadium in Wellington instead on the same day.

“With Auckland at Alert Level 3 until midnight on Wednesday 26 August, the squads will now assemble in Wellington to prepare for the match,” he told the All Blacks website.

“New Zealand Rugby is currently working through the Government’s normal exemption process to seek approval for the Auckland-based players and management to assemble in Wellington from next Monday.

“A final decision on the venue for the match will be made following the Government’s review of Covid-19 levels on Friday.”