Premiership Rugby finally returns on Friday night, five months after their chief executive boldly declared he wanted the sport to be the first back on television after the Covid-19 lockdown.
Despite that pitch by Darren Childs, rugby is the last major sport to resume — perhaps unsurprising given the contact nature of the game — and Harlequins’ match against Sale at The Stoop will certainly have a different feel about it.
For one, Quins will be getting changed in one of the stadium’s big bars, as opposed to the dressing room, to ensure they stick to social distancing, while captain Chris Robshaw will also not lead the usual pre-match huddle.
It is all part of the new way of life for the players, who are now tested twice a week for Covid-19 and train in strict bio-secure conditions.
“I don’t know if you have been to the Rec (Bath’s ground) in the middle of winter and been in their away changing room? You would much prefer to get changed in their bar,” says Robshaw.
Players can smile now they are about to return to action, but this five-month hiatus has been a testing time for rugby. It has been marred by disputes over pay cuts and the game was on the brink of a civil war when the Rugby Players’ Association fought back after Premiership Rugby Limited announced the salary cap was to be lowered.
Grievances were eventually settled, but PRL have scars from the battle and Childs remains under scrutiny — not least because compared to other sports administrators he has stayed relatively silent during the pandemic.
The splits within rugby have been highlighted again this week over the question of whether players should take a knee in support of the Black Lives Matter movement. All clubs are united in the fight against racism, but how they want to convey their message is not consistent.
“I don’t think we’re going to get it to look like the Premier League,” says former England wing Ugo Monye, who is part of a working group on the initiative. “It might look a little bit more like Formula One.”
This has been a turbulent season. It may feel like a lifetime ago, but it really was during this campaign that Saracens were found guilty of salary-cap breaches and relegated.
However, the Premiership can now sign off in style with a packed schedule of nine rounds of fixtures in six weeks.
Saracens’ relegation means it is one of the most open title races in years and Bristol director of rugby, Pat Lam, declared this week he thinks eight teams could be champions. There are only seven points separating Northampton in the final play-off place and London Irish in eighth.
The lockdown has also allowed transfers to take place and there is excitement about what Bristol can do after they signed Fiji wing Semi Radradra and England prop Kyle Sinckler and agreed loans for Saracens duo Ben Earl and Max Malins.
Sale’s capture of Manu Tuilagi creates intrigue, too, while Jonny Gray’s arrival at Exeter is another stellar signing.
It all makes for a mouthwatering prospect and the fact players are all fresh after five months off adds to the excitement, as usually this run of games would come after a gruelling Six Nations campaign.
This season has been one of the most unforgettable in English rugby’s history, but now it is set up for a grand finale.
The only shame is that fans will not be allowed in the grounds to see the fireworks.
