The Rugby Football Union (England) have failed in their bid to have England’s opening Test match against New Zealand pushed back a week.

England have a three match tour of New Zealand this June but they will be without many of their best players in the opening Test due to their domestic fixtures.

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The Aviva Premiership final is at Twickenham on May the 31st and the first England test against New Zealand is in Auckland on June the 7th.

England head coach has said that players involved in the Premiership final will not play in the opening June Test match as they will not have enough time to prepare.

RFU Chairman Bill Beaumont approached the International Rugby Board about moving the Test back a week as there was a difference of opinion over when the June Test window starts but was unsuccessful.

“We made a request to the IRB because they interpreted the week of May 31-June 1 as a June weekend, and we maintain it is a May weekend,” Beaumont told the Rugby Paper.

“We’ve tried for some time now to get it changed, but to no avail.”

The IRB responded saying, “When the Test schedule was agreed in 2010 the RFU was going through administrative changes. ”

“At that time they were asked to respond to the schedule, and that did not happen, so the schedule was drawn up as is.”