NRL CEO Andrew Abdo says league preparing plans for finals amid worsening Qld, Sydney Covid-19 situation

Victoria will not engage in a bidding war with Queensland for the NRL Grand Final should the Covid-19 situation in NSW force the game to be moved.

Melbourne Storm players could have the opportunity to defend their NRL title at home. Picture: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

Victoria will not engage in a bidding war with Queensland for the NRL Grand Final should the Covid-19 situation in NSW force the game to be moved.

But Victoria’s sports minister Martin Pakula said the state was willing to assist if the outbreaks in Sydney and southeast Queensland forced rugby league’s administration to make a difficult call on the grand final.

He has exchanged text messages with NRL chairman Peter V’Landys and confirmed Victoria’s tourism organisation was also in discussions with league officials in case the situation worsened in the northern states.

Both the MCG and Marvel Stadium would be available to host the NRL Grand Final, which is held a week after the AFL decider, should a move be required.

“I have exchanged text messages with Peter V’Landys. I know the team from Visit Victoria are talking to the NRL. Peter indicated yesterday that they are probably looking at New South Wales or Queensland would have the priority but they are happy to have the conversation,” he said.

“We indicated to the NRL we would be available for a conversation but we are not getting into a bidding war with the Queensland Government. If the NRL comes to us and says to us, ‘Look, we don’t think Sydney is an option and we don’t think Brisbane is an option’ and they want to talk to us about the MCG and Marvel, then we are ready to have that conversation.”

Mr Pakula also said Victoria would not enter into a bidding war with South Australia or Western Australia for the AFL Grand Final with good reason _ the game is contracted to the MCG until 2058.

Both the AFL and the Victorian Government are working on a Covid-safe plan in relation to crowds attending matches throughout the finals series including the grand final.

Transmission in the latest outbreak in Victoria occurred at both the MCG and AAMI Park.

Mr Pakula said this had prompted a rethink regarding crowd safety measures.

AFL chief executive Gillon McLachlan said he remained optimistic the grand final will be held in Melbourne but was not prepared to outline “thresholds” regarding the league’s hopes for crowds at the MCG.

Optus Stadium in Perth can host 60,000 and Adelaide Oval well over 50,000 fans.

Both McLachlan and Mr Pakula ruled out the introduction of a policy requiring fans to be vaccinated in order to be able the finals series, stating it was too early in the vaccination roll out for that to be possible.

But it is a discussion that will be held for future years,

The NRL is prepared to relocate the finals series to Melbourne in order to play “safely in front of crowds” should the Sydney and South East Queensland Covid-19 situation continue to worsen.

The NRL relocated the season to Queensland last month as the Delta outbreak gripped Sydney, but new fears that the Sunshine State’s lockdown could be extended has thrown the NRL into contingency planning mode.

The Queensland chief health officer on Saturday announced all professional sport was to be suspended during the lockdown. By Sunday, the NRL had come up with a plan to ensure games could go ahead, albeit without crowds.

NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo said all options were on the table in terms of planning for the grand final.

While the grand final is still weeks away, NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo told the Today show on Monday that “all options are on the table”.

“We want to play the grand final, which is pinnacle of the season … What a tough season this has been for us all,” he said.

When asked whether the league would consider playing the finals at the MCG, Mr Abdo said: “We want to play it safely in front of crowds. All options are on the table.”

Round 20 of the NRL was played at an empty Suncorp Stadium due to the Covid-19 lockdown. Picture: Handout/NRL Photos via Getty Images

“We have certainly had a lot of interest from a number of different states. And we have got some time between now and October to see what unfolds and where it’s going to be safe to play,” he said.

“It would be terrific for us to play a grand final in front of a full house.”

With the threat of Queensland’s lockdown being extended beyond Tuesday, Mr Abdo said the NRL had a plan it was “working on constantly”.

The NRL worked closely with Queensland chief health officer Jeannette Young to ensure games could go ahead on the weekend without crowds amid the Covid-19 lockdown. Picture: NCA Newswire / Dan Peled

“We will be ready if the lockdown is extended. We have these set of protocols now, level 4-plus we call them,” he said.

“Players are getting tested daily … This is so dynamic, we have to be ready for everything.”

The league has been plagued with controversy over bubble breaches since the move to Queensland, and Mr Abdo said he had communicated with players and officials about how much was on the line.

“Everyone understands what’s at stake,” he said.

“Yes, we have seen breaches, but they are isolated cases amongst a huge group of people doing the right thing.”