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Six Nations: France v Ireland postponed because of coronavirus concerns

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Scotland v FranceImage source, Rex Features
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France, England and Ireland remain in contention for the Six Nations title

Saturday's match between France and Ireland is the latest Six Nations fixture to be postponed because of concerns over the coronavirus outbreak.

The decision follows earlier steps to postpone the Ireland v Italy and Italy v England fixtures.

England lead the table on points difference from France, who failed in their Grand Slam bid with defeat by Scotland on Sunday.

As it stands, Wales' match against Scotland will go ahead on 14 March.

The Women's Six Nations fixture between Wales and Scotland has however been postponed after a Scottish player tested positive for the virus. A further seven members of the Scotland camp - players and management - are self-isolating.

A statement on the tournament website read: "Six Nations and its constituent unions and federations will work closely to identify dates on which all postponed matches will take place.

"No immediate announcement will be made on rescheduling as we will need to discuss with all relevant stakeholders and assess the evolution of the situation."

The decision to postpone England's match in Italy was taken last week because of the worsening situation in the country, and on Sunday France announced a ban of gatherings of more than 1,000 people.

On Monday, the French sports minister Roxana Maracineanu announced the decision to postpone France's final fixture after an "agreement with the French Rugby Federation and tournament organisers".

England, France and Ireland remain in contention for the Six Nations title.

On Sunday, Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden said that sporting events in Britain are unlikely to be affected by coronavirus in the immediate future.

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