You wouldn’t blame regional rugby bosses for having heart palpitations over the future of the Heartland Championship in its current format, thanks to a dreadfully uncertain financial future. But a month later, the coronavirus pandemic arrived and the 12 Heartland unions agreed, with NZR, to cancel the championship this season. The Heartland Championship is a reward for guys that play club rugby and come from small towns.”But the championship is also the biggest expense for each union. No All Blacks tests in 2020 would be a worry for Heartland unions, Buller general manager Andrew Duncan agreed. The Heartland Championship was scheduled to start last weekend with 12 teams and eight round-robin matches before semifinals and finals.

Source: Stuff August 28, 2020 16:52 UTC