After Agen, Toulouse, Lyon, La Rochelle and Toulon, the Parisian club will not play in the European Cup this weekend.
Stade Français has withdrawn from the European Challenge match scheduled for Sunday on the Cardiff Blues field for reasons related to the coronavirus and suffered a 28-0 defeat on the green carpet, the competition organizer announced on Saturday. The Parisian club lost on the first day Friday, December 11 against the Italian team of Treviso (44-20) which saw its second match, scheduled for Saturday against Agen, be canceled due to several cases of Covid contamination -19 in its ranks.
»READ ALSO – Toulon, sanctioned with a defeat on the green carpet, “studies all possibilities of appeal” against the EPCR
“Although there is no evidence that a player or staff member at Stade Français Paris was exposed to the virus during the match on day one, and although they all tested negative thereafter , there are doubts about the Covid-19 status of the team and the staff which prompted the club to express its concerns to the EPCR ”, explained the European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR), which oversees the European competitions, in a press release. “Although a medical risk assessment committee felt that tomorrow’s (Sunday) match at Rodney Parade could be played out safely, Stade Français Paris were reluctant to travel to Wales,” added the ‘EPCR.
A match results resolution committee met and therefore considered the Cardiff Blues winners with a score of 28-0 and five points in the standings, said the EPCR. The Stade Français had recorded a cascade of coronavirus infections during the summer preparation to the point of not being able to line up a valid first row during the first day of the French Championship in early September. The reception of Bordeaux-Bègles was then postponed to a later date. The match between Treviso and Agen was also called off, as were four European Cup matches involving Toulouse, Lyon, La Rochelle and Toulon.
– .
