AFL 2022: The Crows and Port Adelaide could be disadvantaged by South Australia’s tougher close contact rules
Adelaide and Port Adelaide are not happy they have to operate under different rules to Victorian rivals. But the AFL won’t step in, so it’s over to SA Health.
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The AFL is not prepared to alter its “play on at all costs” approach to the coming season despite Adelaide and Port Adelaide being clearly disadvantaged by South Australia’s stricter Covid-19 rules.
The Crows and Power are more vulnerable to losing players because close contact protocols are harsher in South Australia than Victoria.
The clubs have made no attempt to hide their concerns and irritation of having to operate under different close contact definitions to rivals this pre-season.
But their only chance of a reprieve will be if the state’s chief public health officer relaxes the definition with a review to happen in the coming weeks.
Under SA’s current rules, close contacts include anyone who has had more than 15 minutes of contact with a positive case, face-to-face indoors without masks.
In Victoria, this time frame is four hours.
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This strict close contact definition meant the Crows couldn’t field up to eight players in their practice match against Brisbane last Friday.
Adelaide senior assistant coach Scott Burns made the point post game that if they were under Victorian definitions they could have featured against the Lions.
“(It’s tough) when you lose six to eight players who didn’t play, if we were under Vic protocols and guidelines for Covid rather than SA ones we would have had them available,” he said.
“It probably puts too much pressure on too many younger guys.”
When contacted on Wednesday, the AFL had no plans to intervene, leaving the clubs at the mercy of government and health authorities.
The AFL has previously imposed restrictions on Western Australian clubs, limiting how many could train in a group in 2020 to prevent players in that state getting an advantage over the rest of the competition.
It means SA players are urged to be as vigilant as possible so they don’t get caught up as a close contact and have to isolate ahead of Round 1.
At the Adelaide season launch last week, Crows players Reilly O’Brien and Josh Rachele had to arrive at the function at Adelaide Oval in a separate lift to attendees.
Interviews featuring the two were limited to 10 minutes so they wouldn’t fall under the close contact definition.
But there is a potential light at the end of the tunnel for the two clubs with SA’s chief public health officer professor Nicola Spurrier to review the state’s isolation and quarantine guidelines for positive cases and close contacts in the coming weeks.
Police Commissioner Grant Stevens has fuelled hope that April 1 will be the date that the vast majority of SA’s Covid rules will be relaxed.
It is unclear if the close contact definition will be a part of this.
“If there are opportunities to make changes to close contact requirements that will be considered by SA Health,” he said.
“In particular by Professor Spurrier and she indicated last week that would be something that she will be doing over the next couple of weeks.”
‘It’s not great’: Power players feeling pre-season pressure
- Matt Turner
Alarm bells are not ringing at Port Adelaide after its opening pre-season loss but the players are feeling the weight of expectation “a little bit” heading into the 2022 campaign.
Not unlike its 71-point preliminary final hiding, Port Adelaide was outhunted and outworked, particularly early.
The Power has one more trial game – against the Crows this Saturday – and two weeks to address its issues before its season-opener.
Houston said the team had to put aside the past two years of making preliminary finals and turned its focus to 2022.
“It’s not great, but I wouldn’t say it’s alarm bells,” Houston said of Friday’s result.
“It’s the first game of 2022 and we’ve still got six months until the season wraps up so it’s good that it happened early and we can work on it, and improve it.
“Hopefully by Round 1 that’s all gone … and our intensity is up.
“We start on a level playing field and we can’t let that (last two years) affect our mindset and how we go about things.
“There is a little bit of expectation but we can only control what we can.”
Houston said the team “thought things were just going to happen” against the Suns and the team was not switched on during the first half.
“We’ve got to be able to have that mindset that we’re going to go into a game and scrap it out the whole way,” he said.
“Not going in thinking we’re going to win by 60 points, but we’re actually going to go in and try and win by one point.
“I think that’s something we’ll definitely work on this week, the contest and being able to hunt teams and stay in it for longer, especially when things aren’t going our way.
“Obviously that hurt us in the prelim last year and that’s something that we want to get out of our game.”
Houston said the team remained hungry to take the next steps as it chased a first flag since 2004.
Scott Lycett (ankle) and Sam Powell-Pepper (hamstring) were riding exercise bikes at training on Tuesday after sustaining injuries against the Suns.
Connor Rozee, who did not finish Friday’s match due to a minor ankle issue, took part in the main group session.
Lycett is expected to play against the Crows, while Powell-Pepper is on track to feature in Round 1.
Miles Bergman (shoulder) just needs to get through contact training to become available, draftee Hugh Jackson will start taking part in all drills in the next week and ex-North Melbourne midfielder Trent Dumont is expected to play in the SANFL trial in a fortnight.
Kane Farrell is taking part in every drill and moving well as he continues his recovery from an anterior cruciate ligament injury.
As for Houston, he said he was over a shoulder injury from last season that prevented him from training some weeks and was now hoping to spend more time through the midfield.
Optimism growing about Power star’s round 1 hopes
—Simeon Thomas-Wilson
Port Adelaide has dodged a couple of injury bullets with Scott Lycett able to play this weekend and Sam Powell-Pepper expected to be available for Round 1.
The duo, along with Connor Rozee, failed to finish the Power’s practice match loss to Gold Coast on Friday.
Rozee suffered a slight ankle roll in game and there was no concern as to whether the young gun would miss any games despite him not featuring in the second half.
Lycett also rolled his ankle in the third quarter – and did not return – but given the importance of the big man to the Power there was some doubt as to whether he would play in the Community Series Showdown against Adelaide at Richmond Oval on Saturday.
But the Power announced that Lycett has pulled up well and was expected to be available to take on the Crows.
The good news has continued to come for the Power.
While Powell-Pepper is considered unlikely to play against the Crows, after suffering a minor hamstring strain before halftime, he should be available for selection for the Round 1 clash against Brisbane.
Powell-Pepper has impressed on the track for Port Adelaide this pre-season after he was challenged to show he had the commitment to perform at AFL level through his conditioning.
He kicked three goals in the club’s internal trial and was one of the Power’s best on what was a disappointing day against the Suns before he strained his hamstring in a contest with Gold Coast’s Alex Davies.
Powell-Pepper immediately grabbed at a high area on his left hamstring and the Power said this was him feeling some tightness in the muscle.
Miles Bergman is also on track to be in the mix for Round 1 after he had two operations on his shoulder while there is optimism around Charlie Dixon’s potential availability as he starts to run again following surgery on his ankle.
Orazio Fantasia is still some time away after he had surgery on his knee.
Trent Dumont is also recovering from a procedure on his knee while Kane Farrell (ACL) and Hugh Jackson (hip) are also on the injury list.
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Originally published as AFL 2022: The Crows and Port Adelaide could be disadvantaged by South Australia’s tougher close contact rules
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