Australian coach of Huddersfield Simon Woolford in lockdown in England
Australian coach of Huddersfield and former NRL star Simon Woolford says the coronavirus lockdown in the UK is taking its toll on his family which is split between two countries.
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Huddersfield coach and former NRL star Simon Woolford says England is not coping with the coronavirus crisis as “fear and panic’’ undermine community goodwill.
“People definitely aren’t coming together as a community — it’s an ‘every man for himself’ scenario,” the Australian told The Daily Telegraph from West Yorkshire.
“The overall feeling is one of panic and fear.
“Simple tasks like shopping are unpleasant and unfriendly. Nobody smiles and people glare if you go too close, muttering under their breath about social distancing or lack of stock on shelves.
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“The UK is grey at best, the buildings, the weather and now the mood.”
A former Canberra captain and Dragons hooker, Woolford remains in lockdown as England’s coronavirus death toll moves toward 6000.
Woolford, who turned 44 on Tuesday, had guided the Giants to four wins from five games to start 2020 before the competition was suspended.
Woolford, who represented NSW Country, didn’t mince his words about life in England during this crisis.
“Like in Australia, the shelves are bare. Flour, toilet paper, rice, pasta, meat and eggs are all scarce,’’ said Woolford, who played 234 games for the Raiders.
“Cash is no longer appreciated. Check-outs have Perspex screens while queues to get inside are 200m long.
“The weather is still cold so going outside isn’t really an option and with public places shut there’s nowhere to go anyway.”
Woolford has a family split between England and Australia.
“Obviously being over here and so far away amid a pandemic isn’t ideal. The whole purpose being here was rugby league so with that being on hold, and no idea when or if we’ll resume this season, it’s a really uncertain time,” Woolford said.
“We have three kids back in Australia who have all been affected so navigating the hurdles from across the world has been difficult.
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“We tossed up coming home but with quarantine and our youngest daughter in tow that wasn’t without its hurdles so we’ve opted to tough it out.”
Woolford said being in lockdown, and 17,000km from home, can be testing.
“The days are long,” he said. “When we are awake our support systems back home are pretty much asleep and vice versa.
“We’ve come up with a bit of a plan for the days which helps. I’ve never been as excited when the missus needs something from the shops.
“We’ve also set up a home gym which the three of us use every day and it has been a life-saver. The overall feeling over here is definitely fear.
“It’s a small country size-wise with 74 million people all in very close proximity.
“The streets are empty and there are limits to how many people are allowed in each supermarket. Gloves and masks are now the ‘norm’. It’s a bizarre way for us all right now.”
Originally published as Australian coach of Huddersfield Simon Woolford in lockdown in England
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