Essendon’s Conor McKenna tests positive to coronavirus

AFL’s lawyer says rules mean Essendon must play on, as eight players are compromised by COVID outbreak.

Conor McKenna has tested positive to coronavirus.

The AFL’s chief lawyer said Essendon would be expected to play against Carlton on Friday, even if a quarter of their squad is compromised by a coronavirus outbreak.

The group considered most at risk to contracting the virus from Bomber Conor McKenna, who tested positive on Saturday, are the eight players who completed a weight session on Friday afternoon. It may be days before the health authorities are satisfied as to whether those players are free of COVID-19.

But even if this group is stood down, the AFL rules dictate that if a side has enough players to field a 22-man team and three emergencies, the match will progress according to the AFL’s general counsel Andrew Dillon.

“I think what we will do is work with the DHHS (Department of Health and Human Services) and then we will look at how many players, if any, who are required to isolate,” he told Triple M on Sunday.

“As long as Essendon has got 22 players and four emergencies who are available, they will be playing. We have had scenarios like that at the back end of seasons where players have gone into surgery … and that is what we will be doing.”

The Bombers are scheduled to play Carlton on Saturday night at the MCG and Collingwood the following Friday night at the same ground.

Carlton ruckman Marc Pittonet said the Blues had been advised to prepare for Saturday night’s match as though it will occur.

Former St Kilda and Fremantle coach Ross Lyon said should a group of players be prevented from playing — it has been reported some of Essendon’s leading defenders were involved in the weight training session — there are clear integrity concerns for the competition.

Bombers, contacts advised to quarantine

The Essendon footballers and others who came into contact with Conor McKenna prior to his positive COVID-19 test have been advised to quarantine for 14 days.

As the AFL and government authorities investigate how the Bomber contracted the virus, Victoria’s Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said close contacts of McKenna would need to isolate for a fortnight from the time of exposure.

Essendon’s clash against Melbourne, which was scheduled for Sunday at the MCG, has been postponed until later in the season.

The AFL has taken a big hit from the new wave of COVID cases, forced to scrap tomorrow's Essendon-Melbourne fixture after Bomber star Conor McKenna tested positive to the virus. https://t.co/5zYfOfohG3 @_AMcCormack7 #7NEWS pic.twitter.com/4JcRC7C8C9

— 7NEWS Melbourne (@7NewsMelbourne) June 20, 2020

The Bombers are due to play Carlton at the MCG on Saturday night and Collingwood the following Friday but those matches may also need to be postponed.

Dr Sutton said it would be a matter for Essendon as to whether they have enough players to field a side in those two matches.

While the 24-year-old was seen snorting and spitting during a full contact training session on Friday, it is understood a weights session with a smaller group of teammates later that day is viewed with concern.

Conor McKenna during Essendon's training on Friday. Picture: Seven News

This may force eight other Essendon players to isolate over the next fortnight.

Given the extraordinary circumstances of the season, the AFL has developed measures that will enable unorthodox scheduling to be adopted if necessary.

This was due, largely, to their belief a player would at some stage test positive to the killer virus.

When the first wave of COVID-19 struck, AFL chief executive Gillon McLachlan was concerned the season would need to be suspended for 30 days every time a positive test was recorded.

Those concerns have been alleviated as various safeguards have been built into club training programs.

The AFL believes it will be able to cope with interruptions similar to this weekend while ensuring the season is able to be completed.

The Bombers will play Melbourne at a later date and may be forced to play a handful of games at a far more rapid frequency than usual should the Carlton and potentially Collingwood clashes also be postponed.

The AFL was due to release the next phase of the fixture on Monday but that is likely to occur later in the week as it deals with logistical challenges including the desire of West Coast and Fremantle to leave the Gold Coast after Round 5 matches.

McKenna returned to Ireland during the season suspension.

McKenna had travelled home to Ireland during the season suspension and spent two weeks in hotel quarantine upon his return, as did several other Irish AFL players.

Authorities are examining whether McKenna contracted the disease during an open home inspection or visiting his football ‘foster family’, the Sunday Herald Sun reports.

In a significant concern for a competition that resumed last week, McLachlan said it was a reminder the league needed to remain “on our toes” to combat the logistical issues posed by the virus and that it was clear “we are not through this crisis”.

The Bombers shared a plane to and from Sydney last Sunday with North Melbourne and hung on to defeat the Swans in a draw.

The entire Essendon squad and football department were subjected to an additional test after McKenna recorded an irregularity in a swab taken on Friday.

It is the first positive from the 13,000 tests the AFL has done since receiving news last month that it could resume.

“He was tested again this morning and we were informed this afternoon that the test came back as positive,” McLachlan said.

“The health department has been notified as per the protocols, so we will be working with the health department and the Chief Health Officer’s team to work through and identify the close contact with Conor and to also isolate them.”

“We said at the outset of this crisis that we would make all decisions based on medical advice and our priority is and remains the health and safety of our players, staff and the wider community,” McLachlan said.

“We need to do the right thing (and) the right thing for our clubs and the wider community is to postpone this match.”