Coronavirus crisis: Melbourne Storm captain Cameron Smith says NRL season should be suspended immediately
The NRL is determined to keep the season going, but Storm champion Cameron Smith has a different take on how to deal with the coronavirus fallout.
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Melbourne Storm superstar Cam Smith has called for the NRL to step in and immediately suspend the rugby league season.
Speaking after his side’s gritty 18-4 win over Manly at Brookvale on Sunday, Smith claimed the NRL should cancel all games for the next two weeks.
He stressed Storm teammates were at high risk of contracting the coronavirus by spending such a considerable amount of time in airports and on aeroplanes. The Storm returned to Melbourne on Sunday night on a commercial airline.
“After we finish these matches on the weekends then we return to our families. There are several guys in our squad who are going back to their families and new born babies,’ Smith said.
“If we make a decision to suspend the comp for a couple of weeks then I think it gives everyone an opportunity to actually sum up the situation a little bit better rather than being reactive daily or hourly.
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“This is the view of our enter team given we travel a lot, virtually every second week of the competition. We are going to be exposed to airports, air travel and large crowds so there is a major concern there.
“There may be decisions made that are out of our control where we’re forced to stay in Melbourne and not play. Our players aren’t concerned about themselves – they are concerned about their families.
“Craig (Bellamy) has an elderly mother, my parents are in their 60s. Listening to medical advice, he is in the risk bracket, young babies are in the risk bracket. We want to be playing rugby league but this is a serious thing happening at the moment.”
New Zealand Warriors will remain in Australia this week to play Canberra on the Gold Coast this Saturday but have stated the team will return to New Zealand on Monday.
Asked would his side return to Melbourne and opt to stay there, Smith said: “I think the league are in talks at the moment to try and help the interstate clubs with their travel, to try and minimise that risk around crowds and flying on commercial airlines.
“I feel I can talk on behalf of all the other players – I was just having a chat with Daly (Cherry-Evans, Manly skipper) out on the field after the match about the situation, I wouldn’t question the Warriors about going home and wanting to be with their families.
“That’s when the administration has to ask the question when you’re a team down, how could the competition go on?
“I think we (players) are all in the same boat at the moment. It’s changing daily, isn’t it? Sometimes it’s changing hourly…just trying to stay away from large crowds, when we’re in transit, through airports.
“This thing is bigger than rugby league. I know there are a lot of decisions to be made around our sport from the administration but this affects more than just rugby league and rugby league players.”
Storm coach Craig Bellamy also spoke passionately about coronavirus.
“For me, the health and safety of our players is paramount,” Bellamy said. “I’d go a little bit more than that. I’ve got a mum who is 86 or 87. I’ve got grandkids. I still want to be hanging around them through life.
“I don’t want to not be hanging around them because I might in infect them. That’s my major concern as an individual. But it’s not my decision and it’s not up to me.”
Originally published as Coronavirus crisis: Melbourne Storm captain Cameron Smith says NRL season should be suspended immediately
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