Darwin dangles crowd carrot in front of AFL for season restart

The Northern Territory has dangled a huge carrot in front of the AFL, saying games could be played in front of crowds at a Darwin hub.

Darwin’s TIO Stadium has been a regular host of AFL games.

The Northern Territory has dangled a huge carrot in front of the AFL, saying games could be played in front of crowds if a hub is established in Darwin.

Players would also be free to move around the community — where cafes, bars and restaurants will reopen on May 15 — rather than being locked down in resorts, NT Chief Minister Michael Gunner said.

The NT has begun a nation-leading lifting of restrictions that will see competitive sport resume on June 5. Gunner said crowds would be permitted at sporting events — including AFL matches — if the proper health protocols were in place.

“You can play a footy game, you can have a crowd, it’s the dry season up here in Darwin, it’s a magic place to be, so for me that’s a massive attraction I would have thought to anybody, including the AFL,” he said.

Gunner said he had been in regular contact with AFL chief executive Gillon McLachlan about the hub proposal.

He said he had sent McLachlan the NT’s roadmap for reopening on Thursday and had offered the AFL briefings with government officials.

The issue was discussed at Friday’s national cabinet with the AFL presenting health officials a 14-page document outlining how they would ensure player and community safety under the hub proposal.

While southeast Queensland and Western Australia had been considered favourites to secure the hubs, the prospect of playing in front of crowds – a more attractive prospect for broadcasters — could help swing a decision in the Northern Territory’s favour.

Gunner said seating at Darwin’s TIO Stadium could be arranged in a “chessboard” formation, with every second seat blacked out, to ensure social distancing protocols were maintained.

He said a bigger concern would be how to manage people coming in and out of the stadium.

The Northern Territory has no recorded community transmission of coronavirus and has not recorded a positive case for 24 days.

This has meant the more severe lockdown measures implemented in most states – such as limiting gatherings to two people – have not been enforced in the NT. The ability to move around outside the AFL’s quarantined “villages” could also help alleviate concerns raised by the AFL Players Association about players being separated from their families.

Players and their families would be able to come to Darwin, however they would still have to complete a 14-day quarantine period in a hotel – at their expense or the AFL’s – before they could move around the community.

“My priority has been Territorians, we’re now the safest place in Australia, and in delivering what we are delivering for Territorians, we create an environment that would, I assume, be attractive to the AFL,” Gunner said.

But the Chief Minister has made it clear the NT Government will not offer the AFL any money to bring a hub to the Top End.

Meanwhile, Gold Coast players haven’t declared any opposition to going into an AFL isolation hub, as the Suns wait for a clearer idea of just how the season will resume.

Suns coach Stuart Dew says as far as he’s aware none of his squad are concerned, adding the club had urged players to sit tight until the AFL releases a more detailed outline of just what would need to happen to get back to playing games.

“As a footy club we’ve told all our players and staff, let’s not get too caught up in some of the details that do get floated because that’s not all the scenarios,” Dew said.

“One thing the AFL’s done really well is investigate every scenario.

“It’s just having a balanced view and once we get that then we can dig a bit deeper into the details.”

Dew’s wife Sarah Cumming was one of several journalists taking part in a video conference with the Suns coach on Friday.

The pair have two young children, daughter Frankie and son Jack, but Dew said his family commitments wouldn’t give him concern about entering a hub.

ADDITIONAL REPORTING: AAP