The Northern Territory Football League’s eight member clubs bracing for COVID-19 challenges

THE big shirt front on the game of Australian football created by the worldwide coronavirus pandemic has also harmed business houses and potential club sponsors around the country

Nightcliff players celebrate their 2019-20 NTFL Grand Final triumph over St Mary’s. But will the short-term future of the Territory game be a bleak one? That is because the COVID-19 crisis is bringing sport all around the world to its knees. Picture GLENN CAMPBELL

THE big shirt-front on the game of Australian football created by the worldwide coronavirus pandemic has also harmed business houses and potential sporting club sponsors around the country.

Those sporting clubs will be forced into preservation mode in order to survive the long-term financial problems caused by COVID-19.

The eight NTFL clubs could be caught in the firing line with just over six months until the 2020-21 NTFL season kicks off.

Premier Nightcliff has taken a business-as-usual approach after phone hook-ups with sponsors and last season’s playing list produced a series of positive responses.

Tigers president Mark Dodge said no sponsors would not be able to afford another season at Nightcliff.

“I guess the only query for us in terms of recruiting is when we’ll get going next season,’’ Dodge said.

Runner-up St Mary’s will be without the funding generated from hiring clubrooms to affiliate sporting organisations who have been left with cancelled seasons.

Club president Steve Ludwig said the Saints were “bunkering down’’ until they were able to trade again.

Ludwig said club sponsors were happy with Saints’ progress last season.

“(But) it’s going to be touch and go in terms of getting people to commit when, hopefully the worst of this is over,’’ he said.

Preliminary finalist Southern Districts is playing a waiting game in terms of renegotiating sponsors for the new season.

A similar situation exists with the Tiwi Bombers, who say the future holds a lot of uncertainty despite their present financial solidity.

General manager Leigh Crossman said the Bombers did not expect what was happening this week, let alone at the start of the upcoming season.

“It’s (virus) impacting everyone and that’s not just sporting clubs with people’s lives and jobs and families on the line,’’ Crossman said.

“A lot of our support comes from Essendon and you don’t have to be Einstein to see how they are going at the moment with the AFL season very much up in the air.

“I’ll be talking to them and our private sponsors as much as I can to make sure they get through this.”

Darwin Buffaloes have a lot of questions to ask with the new season scheduled for early October.

Club president Shaun Pearce is confident major sponsors Rirratjingu and Urbex will fulfil their sponsorship obligations, but issues like home grounds for his club, Wanderers and St Mary’s are still pending.

Pearce said the probability of a truly locally-based NTFL in 2020-21 could be a positive for Territory players.

Waratah president Paul Gross expects a post-Christmas start to the new season, with the hope his club’s sponsors will stay on.

“There’s no guarantee of anything right now, particularly when there are some companies who will go broke over this virus thing,’’ Cross said.

“Financially, we won’t be embarrassed and we’ll be ready to start the season, whenever that is. But I would think, without knowing anything, that a few clubs will be scratching the bottom of the barrel.’’

Wanderers are confident they are in a good position going forward after locking in several individual sponsors on two-year agreements.

Club president Jerome Cubillo said his club was comfortable with its financial base, to the point where they were in a position to put some money in the bank and do some forward planning.

“So we’ll be OK, but the uncertainty out there still might impact some projects going forward in terms of promoting local kids and fine-tuning some other areas,’’ Cubillo said.

Palmerston president Russell Davey said the Magpies were about to embark on several new projects that would embrace the new season.

“We’re trying to work out a plan to get more sponsors on board with the virus affecting what is happening out there,’’ he said.

“There should be businesses out there in Palmerston wanting to throw themselves at us being a one-club side in a city.”