All Blacks Aaron Smith and Liam Coltman could be playing club rugby in less than two weeks as the COVID-19 outbreak puts the brakes on Super Rugby.

Highlanders chief executive Roger Clark says the 20 members of his club's squad who will not be in self-isolation could all turn out in grassroots games on Saturday week.

Smith and Coltman are the most high profile of the squad members who did not travel to Buenos Aires for the game against the Jaguars that was cancelled just hours before kick-off.

PHOTOSPORT Aaron Smith did not travel to Argentina because of the controversial New Zealand Rugby player management plan.

It was impossible for the Highlanders - who will arrive in New Zealand on Tuesday - to get home before the government's 14-day self-isolation travel restrictions that came into force at midnight Sunday.

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﻿Clark confirmed none of the returning Highlanders players are showing signs of ill-health and that they will be permitted to train on their own where possible.

GETTY IMAGES Aaron Smith could be set for a rare game of club rugby.

Sanzaar announced the suspension of the Super Rugby competition on Sunday, and were caught off balance by the New Zealand government's decision on Saturday to introduce tough new measures at the border to prevent the spread of the deadly virus.

But plans to keep the Highlanders who are not self-quarantined fit in club rugby could be short-lived with even the grassroots game facing uncertainty.

All community rugby has been put on hold until the first week of May in Australia, effectively immediately.

Even if club rugby in this country isn't affected by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern's decision on Monday to effectively-ban all gatherings of more than 500 people, a New Zealand microbiologist is already warning against continuing with contact sports as coronavirus continues to spread.

The 20 Highlanders squad members who are currently in New Zealand have been given the week off but will return to training next week and be available for club rugby on Saturday week, Clark told TVNZ.

Clark also opened up on the difficulties the returning players will have training while they are self-isolated.

"They can do a little bit of their own stuff. They can't obviously train as a team.

"They can still train in their house, which is obviously weight-bearing stuff, and they can go for a run or a cycle as long as it's not in a public place. But they basically have got to keep away from as many people as they can," Clark told TVNZ.

He also said most players will be able to self-isolate at home but for those who can't, the Highlanders are already making alternative arrangements.

"We've just got Airbnbs or houses that they can go into. It's a containment situation obviously, so it's trying to keep them away from the public," he told TVNZ.