Premiership Rugby games on Saturday moved to avoid clash with Prince Philip’s funeral as cricket’s County Championship plans to pause for an hour and 20 minutes as mark of respect
- Saturday’s four Premiership Rugby fixtures have been moved from 3pm slot
- Duke of Edinburgh’s funeral in Windsor is set to commence at that time
- Two fixtures have been brought forward to 12.30pm and two moved later
- County Championship cricket games will pause for one hour and 20 minutes
- All EFL football fixtures scheduled for 3pm will also be moved to a different time
Premiership Rugby has announced that the kick-offs at all four round-16 matches on Saturday have been moved to avoid a clash with the 3pm funeral of Prince Philip.
Sale v Gloucester and Exeter’s match against Wasps will both start at 12.30pm, while Newcastle against Bristol will kick off at 5pm along with Worcester’s visit to Harlequins.
The ECB has said all nine County Championship matches will pause for an hour and 20 minutes and has asked all recreational cricket clubs to stop play for an hour to pay their respects, alongside observing the one-minute silence.
Saturday’s 3pm Premiership Rugby fixtures will be rescheduled to avoid a clash with the Duke of Edinburgh’s funeral
The Duke of Edinburgh passed away on Friday at the age of 99, with his funeral on Saturday
Cricket’s County Championship is also set to pause between 2:50pm and 4:10pm
Many of this weekend’s football fixtures have also been moved.
In the EFL, clubs whose matches were set to kick off at 3pm — the same time that the service for the Duke of Edinburgh is due to start — were given three options.
They were told that they could switch their matches to Friday, or to 12.30pm or 5.30pm starts on Saturday, and should come to an agreement with their opponents.
The Premier League moved the Wolves v Sheffield United match from 3pm to 8.15pm, while West Ham’s visit to Newcastle remains at 12.30pm and the FA Cup semi-final between Chelsea and Manchester City stays at 5.30pm.
Wolves ‘ Premier League fixture against Sheffield United has been rescheduled as a mark of respect for Prince Philip’s funeral
The time for the Molineux fixture was set to ensure it does not clash with the Wembley encounter, with league officials saying they had acted ‘as a mark of respect’.
Sportsmail understands that a minute’s silence will be held before EFL matches on the next two weekends — and players will wear black armbands.
Meanwhile, the World Snooker Tour is liaising with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport with regard to the World Championship, which is scheduled to start on Saturday in Sheffield.