
- Sunday's final Super Rugby Aotearoa match between the Blues and Crusaders in Auckland has been cancelled.
- This comes after the New Zealand government confirmed that the city would remain in a Covid-19 alert Level 3 lockdown for another 12 days.
- Saturday's Highlanders v Hurricanes match in Dunedin will go ahead with no fans and an earlier kick-off time.
Sunday's final Super Rugby Aotearoa match between the Blues and Crusaders at Eden Park in Auckland has been cancelled.
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This comes after the New Zealand government confirmed on Friday that the city would remain in a Covid-19 alert Level 3 lockdown for another 12 days.
The match could have been played in a closed stadium, with no fans, had Auckland dropped to Level 2, with fans allowed at Level 1.
A sell-out crowd of 43 236 was expected but the match will now be considered a draw and both teams awarded two log points.
The Crusaders have already secured the Super Rugby Aotearoa title after a 32-22 win over the Highlanders in Christchurch last weekend.
Meanwhile, Saturday's Highlanders v Hurricanes match in Dunedin will go ahead under Level 2 restrictions with no fans allowed.
The kick-off time has also been changed to 15:05 local time (05:05 SA time). This is because under New Zealand Rugby Level 2 protocols agreed with government, teams must fly in and out of cities hosting matches on the same day to limit public interaction.
Teams:
Highlanders
15 Mitch Hunt, 14 Josh McKay, 13 Michael Collins, 12 Sio Tomkinson, 11 Jona Nareki, 10 Josh Ioane, 9 Aaron Smith (co-captain), 8 Marino Mikaele-Tu’u, 7 Dillon Hunt, 6 Shannon Frizell, 5 Jack Whetton, 4 Pari Pari Parkinson, 3 Siate Tokolahi, 2 Ash Dixon (co-captain), 1 Ayden Johnstone
Substitutes: 16 Liam Coltman, 17 Daniel Lienert-Brown, 18 Jeff Thwaites, 19 Manaaki Selby-Ricket, 20 Teariki Ben-Nicholas, 21 Folau Fakatava, 22 Ngane Punivai, 23 Tom Florence
Hurricanes
15 Jordie Barrett, 14 Vince Aso, 13 Billy Proctor, 12 Peter Umaga-Jensen, 11 Wes Goosen, 10 Jackson Garden-Bachop, 9 Jamie Booth, 8 Ardie Savea, 7 Du’Plessis Kirifi, 6 Reed Prinsep, 5 Scott Scrafton, 4 James Blackwell, 3 Tyrel Lomax, 2 Dane Coles (captain), 1 Ben May
Substitutes: 16 Ricky Riccitelli, 17 Tevita Mafileo, 18 Pouri Rakete-Stones, 19 Liam Mitchell, 20 Devan Flanders, 21 Jonathan Taumateine, 22 Salesi Rayasi, 23 Chase Tiatia
- Compiled by Sport24 staff