AFL: Latest news on how Covid crisis is impacting the sport
The top-of-the-table clash between Melbourne and Western Bulldogs could come a week early as the AFL gets creative amid the Covid crisis.
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Melbourne and the Western Bulldogs could play a top-two blockbuster next Friday as one of three Round 20 games dragged into Round 19 due to a radical fixture shake-up.
As part of the league’s play-on-at-all-costs mantra a league which on Sunday night withstood another major Covid crisis will relentlessly push ahead with its fixture.
As revealed on Sunday by News Corp, the league is considering flipping three games from Round 20 involving six teams into Round 19 then pushing their Round 19 games into the following week.
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It would be the first time the league has had to reorder its fixture as it sprints to the finish line of the home-and-away season.
The league could play Round 20 clashes Melbourne-Western Bulldogs, Brisbane-Gold Coast and Adelaide-Hawthorn next week.
Then the league would shuffle the three Round 19 fixtures involving those six teams back to Round 20, which would be Gold Coast v Melbourne, Hawthorn v Brisbane and the Western Bulldogs v Adelaide.
By that stage the league might have a better ability to fly teams across the border and might be able to play the Darwin clash between the Suns and Demons.
The Bulldogs might also be able to have fans at their Ballarat clash against Adelaide in Round 20.
The Bulldogs expect to play Melbourne next week in the second clash between the contenders without crowds this season.
The league’s priority is to play the Port Adelaide-Collingwood clash next Friday night in Adelaide to kick off the Round 19 fixture.
But South Australian health authorities would need to allow the Pies to stay overnight after 60 hours of midweek quarantine or the league will have to move the game to Saturday.
If they have to find another Friday night contest Melbourne versus the Western Bulldogs would be the natural fit.
It is understood Geelong’s request to play its game against Richmond at GMHBA Stadium will be denied by the AFL, with the league and the MCC keen to keep the game at the MCG.
There are commercial considerations given signage agreements and the minimum number of games that must be played at the MCG, with Geelong frustrated at the AFL’s inability to bend.
North Melbourne returned on Sunday night from the Gold Coast, making Essendon the only Victorian team still in Queensland.
The Bombers will remain in the state for the next two weeks and take on Sydney and GWS, with North Melbourne still keen to play its Round 20 contest against Geelong in Tasmania.
The Roos will be reunited with three players — Ben Cunnington, Jared Polec and Jed Anderson — who can now play Carlton next week after deciding against flying north because of family reasons.
The Roos have Will Walker in 14-day lockdown after he was part of a tier one exposure site at the rugby, while Essendon’s Andrew McGrath is also in lockdown.
The clubs are considering whether they could move the players into a transition hub that could be set up by the AFL for the families of NSW players.
They are also attempting to backdate the 14-day lockdown to the day the players were at the rugby so they could be released next Tuesday.
Clubs have been told they will play the same five teams they were originally scheduled to play, but the order of those games could change.
At the end of Round 18 on Sunday there will be 45 games to complete the regular season.
AFL CONSIDERS RADICAL FIXTURE SHAKE-UP TO SAVE SEASON
The AFL is considering making major changes to the remaining five rounds of the fixture to help save the season.
The sharp spike in Covid cases and exposure sites in Victoria has posed a serious challenge for league chiefs who are determined to get through the season but will likely need to switch-up some of the match-ups on the run home.
Clubs have been told they will play the same five teams they were originally scheduled to play, but the order of those games could change.
At the end of Round 18 on Sunday there will be 45 games to complete the regular season.
The tweaks could come into play as soon as next weekend for Round 19 where Port Adelaide is scheduled to take on host Collingwood at Adelaide Oval on Friday night to kickstart the round.
This next fortnight could pose the greatest challenge to the fixture bosses with Victoria in a lockdown which may be extended in the wake of some worrying exposure sites including AAMI Park for a rugby union game and an inner-city Melbourne pub where soccer fans gathered.
One option being strongly considered by the AFL is to move three Round 20 fixtures to Round 19 to allow for least disruption to the fixture.
It would mean the league could play Melbourne-Western Bulldogs, Brisbane-Gold Coast and Adelaide-Hawthorn next week, with getting Adelaide in and out of Melbourne the only challenge.
Then the league would shuffle the three Round 19 fixtures involving those six teams back to Round 20, which would be Gold Coast-Melbourne, Hawthorn v Brisbane and the Western Bulldogs v Adelaide.
By that stage the league might have a better ability to fly teams across the border and might be able to play the Darwin clash between the Suns and Demons.
A Round 22 Western Derby between West Coast and Fremantle could be brought forward if required although St Kilda has already departed Melbourne to arrive in Perth in preparation for their Round 19 game against the Eagles.
The Saints were also fixtured to play Fremantle in Round 23 at Marvel Stadium but that could be brought forward and moved to Western Australia so that the Saints play back-to-back games in WA at Perth Stadium.
The Saints will be in hard lockdown in Perth this week in preparation for the scheduled battle against West Coast.
The Dockers are scheduled to take on Sydney Swans in Geelong on Saturday, while the Cats want their Grand Final rematch against Richmond changed from the MCG to GMHBA Stadium on Sunday if there will be no crowds.
COVID CHAOS: GAME TIPPED FOR MOVE AS STAR IN QUARANTINE
Hawthorn’s Conor Nash has been cleared to resume training with the Hawks after missing last night’s clash against Melbourne after being exposed to a Tier 1 site in Victoria.
The Herald Sun understands Nash, who could not return a negative Covid test in time for the dramatic draw, has now done so and been cleared to return to the club.
Nash was one of many AFL staff and players caught up in the latest Covid scare, after many of them attended the Wallabies-France rugby test at AAMI Park on Tuesday night.
He was not in a Tier 1 site but may have had some contact with someone that was, which meant he still needed the quarantine until that test result came back.
He is not required to quarantine for 14 days, but players from North Melbourne, Essendon, St Kilda and GWS had at least one player at the game.
Gate 7 of AAMI Park has now been upgraded to a Tier 1 site but the league does not believe any more players will have to quarantine.
Essendon’s Andrew McGrath and North Melbourne’s Will Walker are in 14-day hard quarantine in Queensland after being at the rugby in a tier one site.
They will have to continue quarantining in Queensland, even as the Roos prepare to fly back to Melbourne on Sunday night after their clash with the Dons.
Walker has been supported by the Roos and provided with equipment including an exercise bike, with the AFL considering how it can support the players.
One avenue might include them being eventually moved to a transition hub where the AFL hopes to house the families of NSW players.
They have already returned negative tests but will need to remain in quarantine as per Victorian regulations.
North Melbourne will return to Victoria on Sunday night but Essendon has been told to expect to remain in Queensland for two more weeks as it plays the Giants and Sydney, who are also in Queensland.
The AFL expects to bring forward at least one Round 20 game into Round 19 to allow the season to continue, with the Brisbane-Gold Coast game in Round 20 set to be played next week.
The AFL had scheduled Gold Coast and Melbourne next week in Darwin but that game is unlikely to be allowed to go ahead given border issues.
Clubs have been told the league might release the Round 19 schedule tomorrow with opponents and venues but not times for each game.
The Port Adelaide-Collingwood game on Friday night could be moved to a day contest to ensure the Pies can fly in and fly out under quarantined conditions.
The AFL has games it could move forward to that Friday timeslot if it was forced into a change, including the Geelong-Richmond contest.
The Cats will have their request to move the MCG clash next Sunday against Richmond to GMHBA Stadium knocked back.
The Herald Sun understands the league has made clear it will stick with its contractual requirements which mean the game will be played in Melbourne.
The Cats had argued that with no crowd expected there was no reason not to move the game to their true home ground at GMHBA Stadium.
But while the MCG will not make money from a game without crowds, they have signage and commercial deals which will ensure the game is played at the 100,000-seat venue.
Real concerns are emerging, though, that crowds may be unable to attend AFL matches in Victoria for weeks, possibly returning only for the start of the finals.
The focus is now simply on getting the home-and-away season finalised.
COVID BACKFLIP: WHY VICTORIAN TEAMS ARE HEADING HOME
North Melbourne will join the exodus of Victorian clubs from Queensland on Sunday night as the AFL continues to try and avoid putting clubs in hubs.
The Kangaroos flew to the Sunshine State on Thursday expecting it to be their new home for as many as three weeks.
But instead they are booked on a charter flight from Brisbane to Melbourne after their clash with Essendon at Metricon Stadium.
The move follows the Western Bulldogs returning home on Saturday night after their win over the Gold Coast Suns.
Richmond flew back to Melbourne on Saturday morning after their win over Brisbane on Friday night.
Essendon is the only Victorian team likely to remain on the Gold Coast, given their next two opponents in Greater Western Sydney and Sydney are now based in Queensland.
The Bombers, who are staying in a Surfers Paradise hotel, brought their whole playing squad to Queensland on Thursday with the exceptions of Andrew Phillips and Patrick Ambrose.
Phillips’ wife is 38 weeks pregnant and Ambrose has just had a young daughter and is currently injured, with both electing to stay in Melbourne with the support of the club.
The exodus of Victorian clubs from Queensland comes despite Metricon Stadium being prepared to host as many as four games again next weekend.
Queensland slammed its border shut to travellers from Victoria from 1am on Saturday.
However, the AFL has been able to get exemptions to border restrictions from some state governments given the strict protocols its players and staff are operating under.
LOCKED DOWN: EIGHT CLUBS FACE COVID CHAOS
Several players and staff from up to eight AFL clubs — including Irish Hawk Conor Nash — are in lockdown after being exposed to a regraded Tier 1 site in Victoria.
The Wallabies-France rugby test at AAMI Park on Tuesday night was the common denominator across some of the impacted clubs, but there were also other exposure sites involved.
A supporter at that match tested positive for the coronavirus and the Victorian Department of Health advised patrons in certain nearby rows to urgently undergo tests and isolate.
Nash, who attended the rugby, returned a negative test result but was withdrawn from Saturday night’s game with Melbourne.
“In Conor Nash’s case it meant he had to withdraw from the game today which was unfortunate for him and us,” coach Alistair Clarkson said after the Hawks’ draw with the Demons.
“He’s already had a test once this week that has shown it was negative, I think he has to have another one and if that’s the case we’re hoping he can return into our program as soon as he possibly can to get himself up and going.”
The other clubs affected were Essendon, North Melbourne, Sydney, Greater Western Sydney, Collingwood, St Kilda and Western Bulldogs, but the AFL expects all games to proceed as scheduled.
The league confirmed a number of players and staff were classified as Tier 1, which will result in 14 days of lockdown, starting from Tuesday for those who were at the rugby.
The Bombers, Kangaroos, Swans, Giants and Bulldogs all travelled to Queensland on Thursday morning, and the AFL has notified the Queensland Government and is following directions.
Each person who attended an exposure site has since been tested and returned a negative result.
It’s the latest hurdle for the AFL as it desperately tries to keep the competition running through the ever-changing situation, following Covid outbreaks and lockdowns in Melbourne and Sydney.
North Melbourne, Essendon, St Kilda and GWS had at least one player at the rugby test.
Neither player from the Kangaroos and Bombers was selected for their clash on Sunday, while the Saints footballer played on Saturday.
The Giants had four players in attendance, but only one who was named for Sunday’s Sydney derby against the Swans.
It is believed those GWS footballers were in a different part of AAMI Park, which was not classified as a Tier-1 area.
Other sections within the stadium were classified as Tier 2 or Tier 3, depending on their level of risk. Most of the AFL people involved are Tier 3.
One Giants staff member, who sat separately to the players, was awaiting contact from the Victorian Health department to see if he was exposed to the Tier-1 section.
The Bulldogs also have a staff member in isolation but that person returned a negative test, meaning Saturday’s game with Gold Coast could go ahead as scheduled.
“They have tested negative, so no impact on today’s game for us.”
The Swans are understood to have four high-performance staff in isolation, two of whom must serve 14 days and two others as a precaution for now.
AFL executive general manager of football Andrew Dillon said the AFL would work closely with impacted clubs to protect the health and wellbeing of the competition and wider community.
“The occurrences of the last few days show how volatile the pandemic continues to be in the community – it only respects discipline,” Dillon said.
“We will continue to work closely with the relevant state governments and medical professionals and be led by their advice, and ask everyone in our industry to continue to be vigilant with their movements within their current communities.”
—Jay Clark, Chris Cavanagh, Marc McGowan, Glenn McFarlane and Sam Landsberger
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