Dunedin club rugby players are back on the training grounds this week.
But they are not hitting those tackle bags hard — or at all.
The city’s rugby teams have resumed action after a two-week break during the peak of the Omicron outbreak in the South.
A suspension on pre-season training was lifted on Monday, meaning club teams can return to the training field under "light duties".
That meant non-contact training only, Council of Rugby Clubs chairman Paul Dwyer said.
The situation would be reviewed at the end of the week.
An Otago Rugby Football Union memo to clubs said this would give players, coaches and administrators time to prepare for a delayed start to the season.
Clubs were asked to maintain physical distancing where possible.
The focus should be on ball skills and conditioning — scrums, lineouts and tackling practice were out of bounds — and players should leave the ground as soon as training was finished.
Dunedin premier rugby was scheduled to start on March 26, but is now pencilled in for an April 30 kick-off.