Crows Matthew Nicks, Rory Sloane will bring up big career milestones in Round 1 – but no-one will be at the game to see them
Matthew Nicks will coach his first game for Adelaide, and Rory Sloane will play his 200th in Round 1. But no Crows fans will be present to honour the achievements after the AFL implemented a coronavirus crowd lockout on Friday.
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Matthew Nicks will make his competitive senior coaching debut and Rory Sloane will play his 200th game for the Adelaide Crows in front of no spectators.
The AFL on Friday decided to press on with next week’s Round 1, but fans can’t attend matches for the “foreseeable future”.
After Prime Minister Scott Morrison said all mass gatherings attended by more than 500 people – including sporting events, concerts and conferences – should not go ahead from Monday to limit the spread of the coronavirus in Australia, the AFL late yesterday informed clubs of its plans.
It comes as the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne was cancelled while fans were lining up to get into Albert Park, the NBL announced the remainder of its grand finals series between Sydney and Perth would be played behind closed doors, and Australia took on New Zealand in front of an empty SCG in a one-day international.
Before the announcement of the men’s competition, this weekend’s AFLW matches had already been shifted to behind closed doors – apart from Friday night’s clash between Geelong and North Melbourne.
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As of Saturday, AFL and AFLW matches can only be attended by players, coaches, essential club officials, umpires, AFL match day officials, essential broadcast teams, media and required venue staff.
This means the milestone game for Nicks and Sloane against the Swans next Saturday will be at an empty Adelaide Oval, and Port Adelaide’s Round 1 match at the Gold Coast will also be closed to spectators.
Fans who purchased tickets to the first round of the season via Ticketmaster and Ticketek will receive a refund, while club, AFL and venue members will be “communicated to in coming days”.
The announcement by the AFL means the following week’s Showdown is also set to be spectator-less.
That game is Port Adelaide’s prison bar guernsey game, as part of its 150th anniversary in another blow coronavirus has inflicted on the Power following the abandonment of their Shanghai game against St Kilda.
AFL chief Gillon McLachlan said the AFL acknowledged there was a potential for interruption across the season and the league would continue to look at all fixturing alternatives to ensure both men’s and women’s seasons are completed.
“The health and safety of fans, players, umpires, officials, partners and communities is the priority, so it is important that we take the advice of those who know best, and that advice right now is to continue with matches but not to host mass gatherings, which can put everyone at risk,” McLachlan said.
“We have said from the outset that we will rely on the advice of the medical experts who have been planning to deal with this situation for some time, and we will continue to make decisions based on the advice of the Chief Medical Officers.
“I am disappointed for our fans, but we cannot put them in a situation that potentially jeopardises the health and wellbeing of the whole community.”
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It comes as the AFL actively investigates pushing its season into mid-October after falling into line with government regulations.
Leading sports doctor Peter Brukner yesterday told The Advertiser football was certain to be shut down at some point in coming weeks.
“It is inevitable someone will test positive at an AFL club within weeks,” he said.
“What happens then? You have to cancel or postpone the league.
“If I had to make a prediction it will be Round 1 at empty stadiums and that will be it.
“By Round 2 we will be shut down.”
The Advertiser can reveal the league has already been in contact with the MCC about whether it could still conduct AFL finals in October.
The men’s Twenty20 World Cup starts on October 18-21 days after the scheduled September 26 Grand Final – with the first MCG game on October 25.
There is a 21-day exclusion zone before the first MCG game that would prevent the league from playing AFL games in October.
But a deal could be brokered that would allow the AFL to finish its finals series in mid-October before a quick turnaround, which would see the MCC installing drop-in pitches before the World Cup match.
The MCC is able to operate its ground on a skeleton staff of 200 – just 10 per cent of the nearly 2000 match-day attendees at a sold-out clash.
Brukner said AFL club doctors at his practice had stopped seeing external patients to ensure they did not pass coronavirus to AFL players.
He said there was no point in clubs testing their entire list every day because the virus was moving so fast.
“Someone generally takes about five days to become positive,” he said.
“I could test you today and you are okay.
“Then on Monday you could have spent the weekend with people and got to a barbecue with them.
“You would literally have to test every day.
“One NBA player got coronavirus and the whole league was suspended.
“I can almost guarantee someone in the next few weeks at an AFL or NRL club is going to test positive.”