Johannesburg - Irate Ulster coach Dan McFarland has hit back at suggestions from Durban that his team pulled out of their United Rugby Championship (URC) match against the Sharks for reasons other than illness.
Ulster and the Glasgow Warriors informed the Sharks and the Lions respectively at noon on Friday that they couldn’t play their matches because of rampant gastroenteritis.
In a statement, Ulster said that 29 players and 13 support staff were struck down with the illness which forced the postponement of the game at Hollywoodbets Kings Park.
“Independent medical testing confirmed both E. coli and Norovirus in tested samples,” the statement said. “All precautionary medical, nutritional, and Public Health advice was adhered to prior to any member of the travelling group falling ill.”
McFarland said the outbreak of sickness was “unprecedented” and then added the following: “It is disappointing, especially given how unwell our group was, that some chose to question the reasoning for our game to be postponed, as we have invested a lot as a group and an organisation in getting this fixture played.”
On Saturday, the Sharks’ New-York-based owner, Marco Masotti, described the postponement as “a joke” and questioned whether that it had ever happened before in professional sport. He also said the Sharks should be awarded the match points.
The URC is conducting an investigation into the calling off of the games which is a major blow to the credibility of the fledgling competition which is in its second season.
While there is no doubt that the two visiting teams got sick, the big mystery is how it happened…
Ulster’s statement added that the travelling squad will arrive back in Belfast on Monday afternoon before starting preparations for this week’s derby clash with Munster.
“With players and staff now recovering, we are focused on getting home to start preparations for our upcoming fixture at Thomond Park,” added McFarland.
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