Ten Redbacks players kicked out of an Adelaide bar for breaking Covid rules should have known better, hospitality leader says

The hospitality industry has condemned 10 Redbacks players for putting already stressed workers through more Covid pain after being booted from a CBD bar.

Ten Redbacks players who refused to follow strict Covid-19 rules, prompting their removal from a city bar, added unacceptable pressure to already strained hospitality workers, the industry says.

General manager for the Australian Hotels Association’s SA branch, Ian Horne, said the allegations players became aggressive towards staff at Cry Baby after refusing to stop dancing was not acceptable.

“It’s disappointing at any time when people, whether they’re high profile or not, refuse to or deliberately want to sidestep the obligations that are imposed on all of us,” Mr Horne said.

“They were quite rightly removed as they should’ve been in any licensed premises … with the sort of behaviour that’s been described.”

Cry Baby bar in Adelaide. Picture: Facebook

Police were called to a disturbance at Cry Baby, on the corner of Solomon and Burnett streets, about 12.30am Tuesday.

A police spokeswoman said 10 people were evicted from the premises, with no arrests made or fines distributed.

Allegations were made by witnesses that players became aggressive when they were asked to stop dancing.

Mr Horne said hospitality workers have been forced to be at the frontline of ensuring Covid-19 restrictions are being adhered to.

“The rules are the rules, and I’m not moving away from that, and these people (the players) should have known better, there is no question,” he said.

“The more onus you put on venues to police the rules, the more the staff will be confronted by this, and they're simply not equipped, that’s not why they work in hospitality, it’s meant to be a fun career not a tense standoff every time someone doesn’t like the rules.”

Ian Horne is general manager of the local branch of the Australian Hotels Association.

Andrew Wallace is chairman of the West End Traders Association.

Mr Horne was surprised the men were not fined.

“I think they're (players are) lucky if they don’t get fined, they're certainly lucky that they haven’t been banned (from Cry Baby),” he said.

Adelaide West End Association spokesman Andrew Wallace said the responsibility is on everyone to adhere to Covid rules.

“It’s really up to the punters to be respectful of the venues and the restrictions,” Mr Wallace said.

“Everyone has a role to play and you should never be disrespectful to bar staff, and they had every right to remove them from the venue.”

Mr Horne and Mr Wallace both called on a review of current rules which restrict dancing and stand up consumption in pubs.

The exterior of the Cry Baby bar in Adelaide. Picture: Google Streetview

Hindley Street venue operator John Meek, who owns the Woolshed on Hindley, Downtown and Black Bull, also said rules needed to be eased.

“It needs to happen, it is getting serious,” he said.

“Covid is not here at the moment, if it was here, anyone who wants to be vaccinated or has wanted to be, can be vaccinated. I know older people who have been vaccinated for more than six months.

“We don’t want to be closed until way in next year, we won’t survive.”

Fellow Hindley Street nightclub operator, Dave O’Connell, of the Dog and Duck, said the restrictions were getting harder to police.

He said operators had hoped to have dancing and drinking alcohol allowed by now.

“It has been more than five months since our last community transmission but we still have the same restrictions,” he said.

“We have caps but we are still paying full rent and cost of everything else.

“We are just struggling to understand, and are a bit puzzled, what they (authorities) are doing.”

Authorities say iIndoor, poorly ventilated, and crowded environments are the highest risk for “super spreading” events.

Police Commissioner Grant Stevens said he was concerned about the Redbacks players’ behaviour.

“Obviously it’s concerning that anyone would breach the Covid requirements at the moment, we are really close to hitting the 80 per cent mark,” Mr Stevens said.

“I understand there’s different view about just how much effort we put into managing Covid when there’s a perception that we don’t have it but these rules have held us in really good stead for a long time and we just need to stay on course for a little bit longer.”

An SA Health spokeswoman said any easing of restrictions were a matter for the Transition Committee and based on a risk assessment analysis.

Restrictions are currently in place for different Public Activities due to the significant ongoing threat of Covid-19, and the ongoing high risk of potential community transmission,” he said.

“We cannot afford to become complacent as we work towards our 80 per cent vaccination target.

Health authorities will monitor the impact of the Covid-19 vaccination rollout going forward, including in relation to drinking and dancing, to determine when it is appropriate to ease restrictions with the safety of the broader community always the number one priority.”

The South Australian Cricket Association yesterday said it was investigating the incident.

“SACA has today been made aware of an allegation that several Redbacks players were asked to leave a city venue following concerns about their behaviour,” the statement said.

“While SACA has not received a formal complaint from any party, the details and circumstances surrounding the allegations are currently being investigated.”

Originally published as Ten Redbacks players kicked out of an Adelaide bar for breaking Covid rules should have known better, hospitality leader says