Workington Town game postponed

Rochdale Hornets can confirm that a number of its players and staff have contracted Covid 19, meaning this weekend's clash with Workington Town has been postponed.

A total of 11 players and three staff have all tested positive for Covid-19 at different times over the course of the last 10 days. Initially, three players tested positive, and one was ruled out as a close contact ahead of the West Wales game on July 10. A further seven players this week have reported symptoms and tested positive.

Due to the 10-day isolation period and the seven-day return to play protocols, Hornets are unable to field a team for our next home fixture against Workington on July 25. Under RFL regulations, the club meets the requirements to request that the Workington Town game be postponed.

Chief Executive Steve Kerr said: “We take our commitment to player and staff welfare very seriously and have reported all our cases to the RFL and local PHE. All of our staff and players are doing OK and will be monitored by our excellent medical team as we support them in their recovery. Clearly, this is a difficult situation, society is opening back up and Covid-19 infection rates are on the rise. Our robust protocols and processes are however working, we haven’t had a single lateral flow positive test when players arrive for training, and all the positive tests are a result of community transmission. As a precautionary measure, we made the decision to shut down training environment until July 22 when some players will restart their return to play programmes."

The club hope to work with Workington Town to re-arrange the fixture before the end of the season. Fans who have booked tickets will be able to carry their booking forward to the re-arranged game or request a refund. The club thanks all our loyal fans and sponsors for their patience and understanding.

Fans can contact tickets@hornetsrugbyleague.com to request a refund.