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'Get us the **** out of here' - Cardiff player's deleted URC tweet causes stir

Matthew Morgan /Getty

A deleted tweet by Cardiff Rugby’s Matthew Morgan – in which he heavily criticised the URC – has caused quite the stir on social media.

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Morgan, who was among a number of Cardiff players caught up in the URC’s ongoing South Africa fiasco, which appears to be drawing to a close nearly a week after the country was put on the UK’s red list.

Cardiff yesterday confirmed that a travelling party of 42 players and staff are due to fly out of Cape Town today [Thursday, December 2nd]. All of that group have returned negative coronavirus tests, but an additional six individuals who tested positive for Covid-19 have been transferred to a South African quarantine hotel.

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A 10-day period of quarantine on arrival in the United Kingdom means that the 28 players and 14 staff members leaving South Africa can play no part in the European fixtures.

However Morgan is clearly not happy with how the situation is being handled by the competition, the latest iteration of the PRO14.

Morgan tweeted: “What a shambles of a league the URC is. Shocking they dragged us out to South Africa in the first place and can’t even fly us home. And the Welsh government is getting more of a joke day by day. GET US THE FUCK OUT OF HERE YOU CLOWNS.”

The tweet was eventually removed, but not before it has been given significant exposure on Twitter.

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While there was some sympathy for the frustrating situation Morgan and his fellow players have found themselves in, many were taken by surprise at his clear contempt for the URC.

South African journalist AP Cronje wrote: “Don’t care what you think of the situation, this is absolutely not on. Not by a long long way. Shocking they ‘dragged’ you out?? To a country with less than 1/10th of the daily cases? *Before* the new variant was sequenced? For a competition you’re contracted and paid to play in?”

Welsh journalist Robert Rees wrote: “Bit of an odd post that from Matthew Morgan. Blaming the government fair enough, but don’t get the league point he’s making. *whips out #ItsthePro12sfault*”

Others backed the former Wales star. Popular Cardiff Rugby fan account: “FWIW I absolutely back the deleted Matthew Morgan tweet. “It was entirely predictable that pushing inter-continental travel during a global pandemic would lead to some sort of chaos, it was spoken about all through the Rainbow Cup and the delayed fixtures announcement.”

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The saga has certainly thrown a spanner in the works a number of the involved URC sides’ plans to compete in the Heinkeen Champions Cup on the weekend of December 11th.

Cardiff DoR Dai Young has said the region would “do everything in our power” to play their Heineken Champions Cup games against Toulouse and Harlequins.

“Anyone from this trip will be ineligible to face Toulouse and Quins, but we have got a number of internationals back home and we will do everything in our power to honour these fixtures,” Young told Cardiff’s official website.

“The team will be made up of the internationals who haven’t come with us and some of our best academy players.

“I am confident they will do the jersey proud, but we need the Cardiff support to get right behind us.

“Gruff Rees will lead the team and he will be assisted by Thomas Rhys Thomas and Richie Rees, who remained in Cardiff to coach those not travelling.

“I know they and the boys will want to do it for the boys in quarantine. We will be watching from our rooms, and it will be a real boost if we see a packed Arms Park.

“They will be supporting the boys, those of us in isolation and the club during what has been the most stressful and challenging period I have experienced as a director of rugby.”

– additional reporting PA

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1 Comment
a
allan 1085 days ago

These okes are so soft! No wonder they have never even made a RWC Final.

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JW 1 hour ago
'Passionate reunion of France and New Zealand shows Fabien Galthie is wrong to rest his stars'

Where? I remember saying "unders"? The LNR was formed by the FFR, if I said that in a way that meant the 'pro' side of the game didn't have an equal representation/say as the 'amateur' side (FFR remit) that was not my intent.


But also, as it is the governing body, it also has more responsibility. As long as WR looks at FFR as the running body for rugby in France, that 'power' will remain. If the LNR refuses to govern their clubs use of players to enable a request by FFR (from WR) to ensure it's players are able to compete in International rugby takes place they will simply remove their participation. If the players complain to the France's body, either of their health and safety concerns (through playing too many 'minutes' etc) or that they are not allowed to be part in matches of national interest, my understanding is action can be taken against the LNR like it could be any other body/business. I see where you're coming from now re EPCR and the shake up they gave it, yes, that wasn't meant to be a separate statement to say that FFR can threaten them with EPCR expulsion by itself, simply that it would be a strong repercussion for those teams to be removed (no one would want them after the above).


You keep bringing up these other things I cannot understand why. Again, do you think if the LNR were not acting responsibly they would be able to get away with whatever they want (the attitude of these posters saying "they pay the players")? You may deem what theyre doing currently as being irresponsible but most do not. Countries like New Zealand have not even complained about it because they've never had it different, never got things like windfall TV contracts from France, so they can't complain because theyre not missing out on anything. Sure, if the French kept doing things like withholding million dollar game payments, or causing millions of dollars of devaluation in rights, they these things I'm outlining would be taking place. That's not the case currently however, no one here really cares what the French do. It's upto them to sort themselves out if they're not happy. Now, that said, if they did make it obvious to World Rugby that they were never going to send the French side away (like they possibly did stating their intent to exclude 20 targeted players) in July, well then they would simply be given XV fixtures against tier 2 sides during that window and the FFR would need to do things like the 50/50 revenue split to get big teams visiting in Nov.

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