Western Bulldogs rushed into quarantine amid COVID-19 outbreak

Three days out from their blockbuster clash against the Melbourne Demons, the Western Bulldogs have been rushed into quarantine.

Adam Treloar of the Bulldogs.

The Western Bulldogs have been rushed into quarantine as Melbourne’s COVID-19 cluster grows.

As first revealed by The Herald Sun’s Jon Ralph, a Bulldogs staff member went to Highpoint shopping centre during the coronavirus exposure period.

The Bulldogs later revealed in a statement that all players and coaches from the club have been tested for COVID-19 and will remain in quarantine until they return negative.

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“Western Bulldogs players, football department staff and match-day staff have all received coronavirus tests today and are currently isolating until they receive a negative result, after a staff member reported being at Highpoint Shopping Centre during the exposure period,” the statement read.

“As a precautionary measure, players and staff were asked by the AFL, in consultation with the State Government, to undergo testing and isolate to rule out any risk.

“The Bulldogs co-operated fully with the advice, in the best interests of public health and safety.

“It is expected that players and staff will be able to return to training on Wednesday, pending the negative test results being received overnight.”

The Bulldogs are scheduled to take on the Melbourne Demons in a blockbuster clash at Marvel Stadium on Friday evening, with the first bounce scheduled for 7.50pm AEST.

Luke Beveridge, coach of the Bulldogs.

The AFL is awaiting further information from the state government after it was announced crowds at Victorian games will be reviewed in coming days.

Acting Victorian premier James Merlino said on Tuesday morning it was reviewing settings on AFL game day attendances. There are no crowd caps for sporting events in Victoria currently — but that is expected to change this week.

Ticketmaster confirmed on Tuesday that ticket sales for Round 11 and Round 12 have been stopped — and it remains uncertain when ticket sales will resume.

Another new case of COVID-19 was detected in Melbourne overnight, bringing the total number of infections in the cluster to five.

It comes after Victorian officials announced on Monday that four people in Whittlesea had tested positive to coronavirus, including a man in his 30s, a man in his 70s, a woman in her 70s and a preschool-aged child.

According to reports, the AFL is confident its fixtures will go ahead this weekend with crowds allowed to attend. There is speculation matches may go ahead with crowd caps and mandatory face masks inside match venues.

Originally published as Western Bulldogs rushed into quarantine amid COVID-19 outbreak