IRFU Welcome Progress in Heineken Cup

It now seems that the threatened boycott of the Heineken Cup and Challenge Cup by English and French clubs will not now go ahead.

In a statement issued over the weekend, IRFU Chief Executive Philip Browne said: “There has been a huge amount of work behind the scenes over the last number of weeks by all parties to find a solution and we can now look forward with cautious optimism that an agreement may be signed to secure the long term future of the competition.

“This is important news for the game on a global level but most importantly for rugby in Ireland. The importance of the competition to the professional game and in turn its influence on all over levels of the sport cannot be underestimated.

“The work of the International Rugby Board (IRB) and its Chairman, Dr Syd Millar cannot be overlooked in bringing all the parties to this point and hopefully we will have an agreement in place as soon as possible.”

A meeting of all stakeholders takes place tomorrow when a resolution to the dispute is expected to to be formalised after it was reported in the media that Dr. Millar, IRFU Chairman Martyn Thomas and PRL Chairman Tom Walkinson had signed a moemorandum of understanding.