Adelaide, Port Adelaide left to do it the hard way after hard-line State Government border stance forces them interstate

It was the hard, but right decision for the SA Government to deny the Crows and Power travel exemptions. But it leaves both teams at a huge disadvantage in the pursuit of premiership glory, writes Andrew Capel.

Port Adelaide’s Scott Lycett is tackled by Crows’ Rory Sloane (left) and Hugh Greenwood (now at Gold Coast) in Showdown 47 last season. Picture: Sarah Reed

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This was the move that blindsided the Adelaide and Port Adelaide football clubs.

While the thought of being forced into quarantine hubs interstate had always been at the back of their minds, there was a strong belief among South Australia’s two AFL clubs that the State Government would sign off on their preferred fly-in, fly-out model as the country deals with the COVID-19 pandemic.

As late as Wednesday afternoon, Crows captain Rory Sloane expressed confidence that such a plan would work to reignite the AFL season – suspended, unprecedently, since round one.

“I remember when I first played we used to fly in and fly out the day of a game and I loved it,” the 200-game midfielder said in the hope that a June 11 restart was possible.

A few hours later, the club’s best laid plans were thrown into disarray.

The SA Government, which has done a marvellous job in virtually eradicating the dangerous coronavirus from the state, decided it would not make exemptions to its strict quarantine measures and was not prepared to risk its footballers flying to and from cities like Melbourne and Sydney, which have struggled to contain the spread of the disease, without quarantining for 14 days on return.

Crows captain Rory Sloane dishes out a handball in Showdown 47 last year. Picture: Sarah Reed

This would make playing games in the AFL’s revised 17-game home-and-away season untenable.

It is a brave but correct decision.

There was also the significant matter of SA Health refusing to back down on lifting its ban of sports contact training in large groups before June 8, when the government’s stage two COVID-19 plan kicks in.

How does an AFL team prepare for a match without full contact training for at least two weeks?

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Unless the government quickly changes its mind, Adelaide and Port now have little choice but to temporarily relocate interstate for at least six weeks to reignite the season.

“I didn’t go to sleep real quick (on Wednesday night), that was a shot that blindsided a lot of people late,’’ Crows football director and Brownlow Medallist Mark Ricciuto told Triple M.

“As of this (Thursday) morning, I think the Adelaide Football Club will be preparing to play in hubs outside of Adelaide pre the game starting, and maybe up to the first five weeks of the footy season, so they can get some certainty in programming for the AFL.’’

Adelaide Crows football director Mark Ricciuto (right) says the Crows were blindsided by the State Government’s decision. Picture: Mark Brake/Getty Images

This is despite some Crows, including Sloane, expressing concern at leaving behind loved ones – in his case wife Belinda and eight-month-old son Sonny – to relocate interstate.

Outspoken Power chairman David Koch said his club was “disappointed’’ but respectful of the State Government’s position.

“We take the advice of medical experts,’’ he said.

Koch quickly pushed for Port to relocate to Queensland, where it has held pre-season training camps for the past two years.

“Our preference is Queensland, but obviously we will base anywhere we need to be part of the competition,’’ he said.

The bottom line is that – under current guidelines – there will be no AFL played in SA for some time, including a Showdown, which had been scheduled for round two.

Port Adelaide chairman David Koch says the club will play wherever necessary in order to resume the AFL season. Picture: Michael Willson/AFL Photos

It will make the Power, which insists it is good enough to win the premiership this year, and the rebuilding Crows’ job much tougher.

Not only are they likely to be living on the road for up to two months, but they will have no home ground advantage, although this is likely to be corrected towards the end of the season when travel restrictions are eased and they are compensated with a swag of home games.

WA clubs West Coast and Fremantle are in the same boat as their SA counterparts.

“It will put us at a severe disadvantage to the big Melbourne clubs and other interstate clubs, along with the West Australian clubs,’’ Koch said.

“But that will make victory even sweeter, to get over those hurdles, because we still need to represent South Australia in the AFL.

“What’s the option?

“The alternative is not to play and that’s not an alternative.’’