Premiership Rugby CEO confirms Worcester Warriors will take part in opening game of the new season
Worcester Warriors will start the 2022/23 Gallagher Premiership season on the road to London Irish
©JH34M
With eight days to go until the start of the 2022/23 Gallagher Premiership season, the competition’s CEO Simon Massie-Taylor has confirmed that Worcester Warriors will play their opening fixture against London Irish.
At the Premiership season launch event at Twickenham, Massie-Taylor put rumours that the West Midlands club would not be taking part in the new campaign on pause.
This came less than a day after Warriors announced they had secured funding to pay their players for the month of August in the midst of their winding-up petition from HMRC. Whilst good news, reports emerged this morning that the players had not, in fact, been paid.
The Premiership CEO described the past several weeks as a “positive process” working with all the other relevant partners, which include the Rugby Football Union, Rugby Players Association and HM Revenues & Customs and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport.
“Coming through this has actually been a positive process with all those parties working collaboratively and I thank everyone that has been involved to date, all working through this challenge,” Massie-Taylor said.
“I would like to specifically call out the playing group, who have had it really tough over the last few weeks given the uncertainty and clearly they are not out of the woods yet.
“We are really thinking about the players at the moment, and I would like to acknowledge the RPA, who have been a steady hand throughout this process and been in constant contact with the players and giving them some good advice to them as they work through this.”
Club skipper Ted Hill was also at Twickenham for the captain’s photo shoot. Bringing the Premiership Rugby Cup with him to West London, which Worcester won thanks a 25-25 draw with London Irish, the 23-year-old showed not the slightest bit of strain despite the situation which surrounds him.
Director of Rugby Steve Diamond has been described as the glue holding the side together, who will now definitely play in their season opener on the road at the Gtech Community Stadium against the Exiles in just over a weeks’ time.
Due to some of the club’s bank accounts having been frozen, payment of the players has been delayed, but Massie-Taylor has been assured that the money will make its way to the employees of Worcester Warriors.
“We get to the point where last night the club was able to confirm that they can make payroll,” he said. “They are going through payroll at the moment, clearly the challenges of the winding-up petition is that you have certain bank accounts frozen. So they are going through that at the moment.
“We have been given assurances that the players are going to get paid this month. That takes us to the beginning of the season, so Worcester are able to take to the pitch on the 10th and start the season.
“But as I say, they are not out of the woods yet. Let’s be frank about it. The next month or so is key for them finding a long-term solution for the club.”
