Coronavirus: Footy fans face driver’s licence checks to enter NSW stadiums

Fans from Victoria will be turned away from NSW venues as the state looks to shield itself from the rise in coronavirus cases.

Fans may be forced to show their driver’s licence before entering NSW stadiums, such as the SCG, home to the Sydney Swans. Picture: Getty Images

Footy fans from Victoria will be turned away from NSW venues as the state looks to shield itself from the rise in coronavirus cases in its southern neighbour.

NRL and AFL spectators trying to enter NSW stadiums are likely to be required to show their driver’s licence to prove they’re not from Victoria, where the number of new cases has grown by double digits every day for the past week.

The new regulations were announced­ on the same day the NSW government confirmed an elderly man who died in April will be added to the state’s COVID-19 death toll, raising it to 51.

The 85-year-old died at the Opal Bankstown aged-care home in Sydney on April 27, but Chief Health Officer Kerry Chant confirmed the virus was found to have been a contributing factor in his death. The news takes the national toll to 104.

NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard confirmed the state had recorded four new cases up to 8pm on Wednesday, as he flagged the crackdown on Victorian visitors being ­allowed access to footy fixtures.

“We’re quite satisfied they (the NRL and AFL) can make sure that supporters from Melbourne and Victoria are not coming to our games,” he said. “Anybody who’s coming in … they’ve satisfied me they’ve made all necessary ­measures and steps to ensure people­ who will be entering the stadium will be people who are from Sydney.”

The NRL later suggested ­licence checks would likely be required to enter stadiums, and the AFL was expected to follow suit. Stadiums with a capacity of less than 40,000 will be allowed to host up to 10,000 NRL and AFL fans from next Wednesday.

The state’s four new corona­virus cases included a seven-year-old from Lane Cove West Public School, who developed symptoms on Saturday. The Sydney school is closed for deep cleaning, although the ­student reportedly did not attend­ during the week.

The three other cases involved travellers in quarantine.

Mr Hazzard said the new cases took NSW’s total to 3162 since the pandemic began in January.

Premier Gladys Berejiklian said with Victoria’s situation in mind, it was crucial for her government to strike the right balance ­between easing restrictions and preventing community transmission.

“The risk will increase because we are easing further restrictions but we also can’t sit still,” Ms Berejiklian said on Thursday. “We can’t allow the economy to continue to decline because then we will have so many people out of work that it won’t be a position from which we can get ourselves out of.”

AAP