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Wales Online
Sport
Matthew Southcombe

Cardiff v Munster postponed as BBC Wales run out of resource because of King Charles' visit

Cardiff Rugby's United Rugby Championship opener against Munster this Friday night has been postponed in order to avoid clashing with King Charles III's visit to the Welsh capital.

The Blue and Blacks were due to welcome the Irish side at 7:35pm on September 16 but the game will now take place the following day at 3:05pm.

Broadcasting resource has been reallocated to focus on the visit, meaning host broadcaster BBC Wales are unable to show the match in its original slot.

Confirming the postponement in a statement, the URC said: "Broadcast facilities for both the host broadcaster (BBC Wales) and other TV facilities providers will be engaged in the coverage of the visit and the drain on available resources has resulted in the rescheduling of the game.

"The BKT United Rugby Championship would like to thank both Cardiff Rugby and Munster for their understanding in this matter which has occurred under very unique circumstances. It is also appreciated that BBC Wales made every effort to keep the fixture in its original date and time slot.

"The Cardiff Rugby v Munster will be broadcast live on BBC Wales, RTÉ 2, Premier Sport, SuperSport and URC.tv."

The rearrangement of the fixture has now created a double header, with Cardiff RFC taking on Merthyr in the Welsh Premiership at 11:45am on the same day.

All other URC fixtures are going ahead as scheduled this weekend. That means Scarlets v Ospreys at Parc y Scarlets kicks off at 5:15pm and Edinburgh v Dragons is at 7:35pm. Both games are taking place on Saturday, September 17.

Last week, Cardiff cancelled their final pre-season match, which was due to take place against Zebre on Friday at the Arms Park, as a mark of respect following the death of Queen Elizabeth II. It means Dai Young's side have had one game to prepare for the new season, though the majority of his frontline stars did not participate in the defeat to Gloucester two weeks ago.

The King's visit to Cardiff this Friday, where he will be accompanied by Queen consort Camilla, will be the final stop on his accession tour. The day will comprise a service of prayer and reflection at Llandaff Cathedral, attended by senior faith leaders from communities across Cardiff. The Royal couple will then visit the Senedd to receive a motion of condolence.

The monarch will then attend a reception at Cardiff Castle, which will include a private audience with the King for the First Minister and the Presiding Officer of the Senedd, Elin Jones.

Cardiff Council have said the public are welcome to gather in the castle grounds and it is expected the King and Queen Consort will meet the public after the Castle reception. Space is limited and entry will be restricted to around the first 2,000 people to arrive. Full details of the King's visit to Cardiff can be found here.

The Queen's funeral will then take place three days later in central London. You can read more details on that here.

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