The Super Rugby Aupiki tournament continues to be hampered by Covid-19, with Saturday’s game-of-three-halves forced to change format.
Hurricanes Poua have been forced to withdraw from the preseason fixture after members of the squad contracted Covid-19, NZR confirmed in a statement on Friday.
Instead, Saturday's match at Taupō’s Owen Delany Park will feature just Chiefs Manawa and Matatū with a 2.15pm kickoff with the Blues also heavily hit by the virus and unable to field a team.
"We’re currently managing and mitigating exposure to Covid-19 for a few members of our team. The rest of the team will relocate to their Taupō bubble today as planned," Hurricanes CEO Avan Lee said.
"It’s unfortunate that our team will miss our preseason fixture, but our hope is that by delaying game time for a few extra days, we'll see players able to return into the environment, after recovering from Covid-19, and Super Rugby Aupiki will play out in our bubble.”
It comes after Super Rugby Aupiki organisers had to delay the start of the competition earlier this week due to rising case numbers in four franchises.
New Zealand Rugby hopes the competition can now kick off on March 10, with the winner decided by points accrued during round robin play.
"This delay and tweak to the format gives us the best opportunity to see our teams and players compete in what is a crucial competition for women's rugby in New Zealand," NZR's general manager Chris Lendrum said.
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