After an extended break, the best four sides of the 2021 Premier Rugby season will be given two weeks to prove why they should be crowned champions of another strange, strange rugby season.

Ahead of the opening semi finals next weekend, Rugby News caught up with all four coaches to get the inside word on their playoff preparations and see what they had to say about the other three finalists.

Next, we chat to UQ coach Mick Heenan.

How are things looking ahead of the finals?

“It’s been a challenging couple of years for everyone, hasn’t it? But I guess this is a pretty small obstacle for us to overcome compared to what some people are going through,” Heenan told Rugby News.

“We’re in reasonable shape heading into the finals. I think every team would have liked to be training or to have played a few more games coming into it, but we’re all in the same boat.