Eastern Counties Rugby Union

Following this afternoon’s Government announcement that the majority of the country will move into Tiers 3 and 4 as of 00.01 tomorrow morning, we wanted to provide a reminder of Tier implications for community rugby for you to be able to share with your clubs and to help with any queries you may receive in the coming days.

Please see below for guidance on what can and can’t be done in each Tier. While these continue to be extremely difficult times for everyone involved, it was a huge boost to hear Government say that today’s approval of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine is the single biggest stride we’ve been able to take since the pandemic began and will provide a route out of the crisis.

However, for now, with the new variant of the virus estimated to be over 50% more transmissible than the original, it is vital that we all adhere to Tier and Covid-19 guidance until we reach a stage where restrictions can gradually be lifted.

RFU Update here- https://www.englandrugby.com/news/article/rfu-tier-4-rugby-update

Clubs in Tier 3 can still play rugby according to Stage E on the Return to Community Rugby Roadmap Please remember, there is no obligation to play 15-a-side adapted contact fixtures, however it is an option for clubs who wish to do so.
Clubs in a Tier 4 area should cancel any upcoming adult training/fixtures.
At the time of writing, rugby activity in Tier 4 areas can continue for U18s (including those who were under 18 on 31 August 2020) and for disabled people as exemptions are in place. We will advise of any changes if we receive an update from Government in the next few days.
Government advice on sports activity in Tier 4 areas is here
For any queries, please visit our Helpdesk FAQs on our Club Support page here
Resources are also available on our Coronavirus Hub here
If you are unsure on what tier you are currently in or will be going into, you can find it using the Government website here (Each bullet point listed on the Government website represents each specific area.)

Please see below for a reminder around travel and match play in each tier:

Adult Rugby

Adult players living in Tier 3 can only travel within their own specific Tier 3 area to train or play. (See above for Government website areas)
Adult players living in Tier 3 cannot travel into another Tier 3 area (or other Tiers) to train or play (which includes their own club if it is in a different geographic area).
Adult rugby is not permitted in Tier 4.

Age Grade
At the time of writing, the following still applies. We will advise of any changes if we receive an update from Government in the next few days.
Age grade players may, due to Government exemptions for U18s, travel across tiers 1-3 to train or play and can be accompanied by one parent or carer. However, to protect all involved, we strongly recommend that wherever possible training and match play follows adult guidelines.
Age grade players in Tier 4 may only travel within their specific Tier 4 area to train or play and may only be accompanied by one parent or carer.

Volunteers
Volunteers (including coaches and match officials) may travel across Tiers 1-3, where necessary, to enable participation to take place. However, to protect all involved, we strongly recommend this is kept to an absolute minimum.
Volunteers (including coaches and match officials) living in Tier 4 should only travel within their specific Tier 4 area to enable participation to take place for U18s ONLY.
Additional exemptions are in place for disabled people.

We will update you when we receive further information from Government and will work hard to enable as many people as possible to return to rugby when it is safe to do so.

While it’s not the way many of us would wish to start 2021, the priority is to keep everyone safe. We wish you all a healthy New Year and will be in touch again soon.