A false positive Covid-19 test in the Springbok camp reportedly nearly caused chaos in the Rugby Championship and would have severely disrupted match preparations.
Stat attack: Griquas star leads the way in Currie Cup
According to a Sydney Morning Herald report, the Rugby Championship has narrowly avoided a being thrown into disarray again after a member of the Springboks’ backroom staff returned a false positive.
South Africa and Argentina flew from Cape Town to Brisbane this past weekend for the remainder of the Championship. Upon arrival, a Bok staff member was investigated by the Queensland health department after returning a positive Covid-19 test.
The Springboks and Argentina were all forced to isolate on Monday until the staff member had completed further testing.
It was later revealed that it was indeed a false positive after the fully vaccinated staff member returned a two negative tests, completed by the Springboks’ team doctor and a PCR test.
Rugby Australia has since confirmed that the case had been deemed a false positive by the Queensland health department.
The Boks and Pumas are now allowed to complete ‘managed isolation’, with players and staff now able to move between their hotel rooms and training facilities and will start normal training on Tuesday.
On Monday, it was confirmed that the Springboks’ planned media briefings for the week have all been cancelled and will only proceed from next week onwards.
This latest Covid-19 scare comes days after an agreement had been reached to host the remainder of the Rugby Championship in Queensland and Gold Coast.
Photo: Twitter
