NRL 2020: PM Scott Morrison calls for Bryce Cartwright, anti-vaxxer bans
ARL Commission chairman Peter V’landys has called on players to follow the NRL’s flu-shot policy after Prime Minister Scott Morrison suggested anti-vaxxers should be banned.
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Peter V'landys turned up the heat on NRL players to support the league’s flu-shot protocol following Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s suggestion anti-vaxxers should be banned from playing.
Morrison weighed in on the vaccination debate on Wednesday following revelations Gold Coast Titans forward Bryce Cartwright wasn’t the only NRL player to reject the injection.
The ARL Commission is considering whether players who refuse to be vaccinated against influenza will be allowed to play when the NRL resumes from May 28 following the COVID-19 season suspension.
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The NRL has made flu shots compulsory as part of strict biosecurity protocols, with players needing to sign a waiver if they opt to not receive the vaccination.
Cartwright trained with the Titans on Wednesday and his teammates are of the understanding he will be allowed to play under the current rules.
But Morrison threw a spanner in the works when he said “no jab, no play” rules should apply in the NRL.
“When I was Social Services Minister I started the ‘no jab, no play’ rule into the childcare facilities,” he told 2GB Radio.
“And I think the same rule applies there. No jab, no play.”
The ARLC is reconsidering its stance on the matter given numerous players have reportedly rejected the vaccination for various reasons.
Chairman V’landys urged the players to band together and take every step necessary to help the NRL relaunch its 2020 premiership.
“We are awaiting advice from management and our biosecurity people before we move forward on what we will do,” he said.
“This is a process with the Rugby League Players’ Association and we need some solid consultation with them before we take any steps.
“We want them to have flu shots because it minimises risk to the game and the player.
“It minimises the risk of players always going to have tests all the time when they have symptoms of COVID when it’s not that, it might just be flu symptoms. It’s for their benefit as well.
“This is part of protocols and we expect players to follow them.
“We believe everyone in the community should be getting flu shots, not just the players. It’s the best way to fight this COVID crisis.
“We are meant to be all in this together.
“I’ve given the RLPA an undertaking that we will always work with them first to see if a solution can be found.”
Titans player Dale Copley, the club’s RLPA representative, said Cartwright had been unfairly targeted and players had been told they could still play without the vaccination.
“It’s pretty important to note he isn’t the only one in the NRL that said he won’t have it,” he said.
“It’s his decision. He’s well and truly able to have the freedom to decide what goes in his body and what doesn’t.
“The rules we’re under is he was able to sign a waiver and still play. While that’s the position of the NRL, I think he has every right to do that.
“There’s no way I’d be forcing someone to get an injection they don’t want to get. That’s completely up to him.
“It’s certainly an issue that’s pretty divisive in the community and there’s a fair few political things attached to that. I’d certainly throw my support behind Bryce.
“Scomo’s (Morrison) got his political parties maybe a bit mixed up there. The Coalition’s the ones that are supposed to try and fight for our freedom.
“I’ve always been a supporter politically of freedom of choice and not encroaching on personal liberty, so I’m more than happy for Bryce to make his own decision in that regard."
As revealed by News Corp, Cartwright is the first NRL player to reject a code-wide request to be vaccinated against the flu as part of strict NRL measures to restart the competition.
Already regarded as rugby league’s highest profile anti-vaxxer, the Titans forward must now explain his stance to NRL chief medical officer Paul Bloomfield, who has urged every player to receive the shot.
While there have been suggestions the ARL Commission could attempt to suspend the 25-year-old, RLPA chief executive Clint Newton said Cartwright needs only sign a waiver to ensure he remains available for selection when the competition resumes on May 28.
The Gold Coast footballer’s wife Shanelle Cartwright took to Instagram on Tuesday night to defend her husband. “
People have the freedom to say what they like, just like we have the freedom to choose which medical procedures we undergo, but ultimately the proof is in the pudding,” she wrote.
“Our kids are a picture of health. They’ve never had an ear infection, never had a chest infection or bronchitis, they have no neuro-developmental disorders or auto-immune disorders and are rarely ever sick.
“They’ve never had a round of antibiotics are any other pharmaceutical drug for that matter (yes, including Panadol). As parents we do our best with what we know, for some, health comes in a needle and it works for them.
“What we’re doing is going seemingly well seeing the state of their health. So if it’s not clear, we’re not anti anything. We stand for medical freedom and the right to choose.”
When questioned that her husband contracted the flu last year, Shanelle Cartwright said he caught it from teammates who had been vaccinated, and that their conditions were worse, although she didn’t provide details of to whom she was referring.
“The boys who got their shots were in hospitals on drips because they got the flu.....” she wrote.
“Bryce was fully vaccinated throughout his childhood and his immune system is f***ed! He has allergies and is sick more than the kids. Not often he’s sick but when he is it hits him hard.”
Elsewhere, Gold Coast hooker Nathan Peats also leapt to the defence of his teammate on Instagram, saying there were “several players” who had opted against being vaccinated.
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Gold Coast head of culture Mal Meninga said the club was awaiting further information about Cartwright’s availability.
“I’m not quite sure what will happen,” Meninga said. “I imagine the government chief medical officer would be reluctant to allow those players to come into camp.
“Those decisions won’t be made at club level. It will be made at national level.”
Asked if he would be disappointed to lose Cartwright, Meninga continued: “To me, regulations are regulations.
“We’re in the bubble under really strict biosecurity measures. The game relies on these measures to be enforced.
“From our point of view, that decision will be taken out of our hands.”
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