RUPA president Damien Fitzpatrick says player safety is a real concern at SCG
The Rugby Union Players’ Association expects to have additional meetings before the Waratahs’ next home match because of ongoing concerns about the SCG’s chewed-up turf.
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The Rugby Union Players’ Association (RUPA) expects to meet with the SCG Trust and NSW Rugby before the Waratahs’ next home match because of ongoing concerns about the dangers of playing on a surface that literally crumbled under the players’ feet.
What should have been a night for celebration, with the Waratahs beating their oldest rivals Queensland on the most hallowed turf in Sydney, descended into farce as the grass field literally disintegrated to the bewilderment of players, spectators and embarrassed officials.
The site of groundsmen making running repairs with rakes and shovels only added to the absurdity of what happened, which became dangerous when scrum after scrum collapsed because players couldn’t hold their footing.
The SCG Trust has promised to replace 3,000 square metres of turf and said the surface will be fine before the Waratahs play the Crusaders on March 23, but the RUPA President Damien Fitzpatrick said additional talks were likely because of genuine concerns about player safety.
“There’s going to be some questions asked whether you can have that much turf lift up,” said Fitzpatrick, who got a first hand look at the unfolding fiasco because he was playing hooker for the Waratahs.
“Safety will come into it so that will probably be looked at in the new few days I’m sure.
“That is something that would come under RUPA for sure and they will work in consultation with the Trust and also NSW (Rugby).”
The Crusaders are stacked with All Blacks so you can bet New Zealand will also be seeking assurances the surface is safe with the World Cup just months away.
The referee in charge of Saturday’s match was New Zealand whistleblower Glen Jackson and he left no-one in any doubt that he considered the field dangerous.
“Jacko did a really good job on managing the ground, he was always checking with the boys and asking ‘are you happy with where we’re about to go’,” Fitzpatrick said.
“He was very consulting about the way he managed both front rows to make sure we weren’t packing down on anywhere we didn’t feel safe.
“There’s going to be some questions on certain parts of the turf. In the coming days they will have a decision on where that it is.
“For the front rowers, there were more collapsed scrums than we would have liked.
“It seemed like the middle was pretty good so if they can replicate some of that but that’s out of our control.”
NSW Rugby chief executive Andrew Hore said he had no doubts that the surface would be fixed before the Waratahs next match at the SCG.
"It's not the only surface in Australia I've ever seen do that and they can turn it around pretty quickly,” he said. “It is what it is, so we've just got to fix it up and move on.”
Originally published as RUPA president Damien Fitzpatrick says player safety is a real concern at SCG
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