Clinging to the concept of survival of the fittest could bring the game to its knees, even in areas once thought to be strongest
Future historians will pinpoint the past few days as the moment global rugby union came face to face with stark reality. Like an iceberg few imagined would ever melt, huge cracks and fissures are threatening to widen and cause a ripple effect even in places where the sport is theoretically supposed to be strongest.
It is not so much the inevitable postponement of all this July’s Tests, with the severe financial pain that entails, that is the giveaway. Nor is it the sight of players still jogging around in small groups, uncertain when the government will permit a return to full-bore training. No, the really sobering stuff is to be found unfolding in the southern hemisphere, with every prospect that similar issues will soon drift north.
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