AFL will move a number of teams to keep the 2020 season alive. All 10 Victorian clubs face the prospect of being away from home for four or five weeks at some point.
Collingwood and Geelong are facing the prospect of being on the road for more than three weeks from July. Other games will likely be played in other states after they have ended their stay in Western Australia.
AFL is struggling to revise its game on the run after the Queensland government announced new coronavirus protocols that forced this week’s games to be reassigned immediately.
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AFL 360 Co-host Gerard Whateley said that a number of plans were being considered and that “mass transfers of teams” would soon take place to end the games.
“In a way, today was liberating. If we thought that this would be linear, if we continued to be “that’s fine” by default, it wouldn’t, “Whateley told Fox Footy’s AFL 360.
“This is not a season for control freaks and it is not a season for risk aversion. If you mumble and grumble this season, you won’t be anywhere. “
“The question of fairness simply has to be put aside. If you come up with this from this point of view, you will be disappointed … it is always compromised, now it is drastically compromised. “
The magpies and cats were set to quarantine on Round 7 in Perth and to switch games against West Coast and Fremantle before returning home.
But AFL chief Travis Auld indicated that their road trips would likely be extended.
“If the quarantine conditions for (clubs) work, I think a period of four to five weeks seems to be fine,” Auld told 3AW’s Sports day.
“In these circumstances, it may not be four to five weeks in the same place.
“If you look at Geelong and Collingwood, for example, they’ll go to WA for three weeks and possibly return via one of the other states (to Victoria).
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“You could come back via New South Wales or Queensland. We have this option that we need to examine. “
But Geelong coach Chris Scott said his club is ready to do whatever it takes.
“I’ve heard Gill say several times this year that we have to stay agile – and that applies to all of us,” said Scott AFL 360. “We just have to roll with the punches and if that’s the price to pay to keep the competition alive, we’re all ready to pay it.”
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When asked if ‘fairness’ is out the window now, Scott said, “I think that’s a good attitude. If you deal with fairness, you will end up being frustrated.
“There will be winners and losers and it probably won’t be until the end of the season, so we can fully appreciate that.
“If Geelong is one of the losers to get out of the way, we’ll take it on the chin.”
Auld also indicated that other Victorian clubs would be sent to Queensland in the near future under conditions similar to the two clubs that would be sent to WA.
The AFL believes that the time spent in New South Wales before arriving in Queensland will count towards your quarantine time.
Clubs could also be sent to South Australia for multiple games if the state’s borders are opened as planned in July.
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Auld said clubs and broadcasters want a two-week notice period for fixtures and that viewer return is also challenging in some states.
“When that comes into play, it is a factor that we have to consider to pay enough attention to fans getting a ticket to the games,” said Auld.
“The complexity continues, but certainly flexibility is really important to us at the moment.”
Auld said the world of the feet had no “clarity as we are used to”.
“Perhaps this idea of releasing one week of game at a time is the best way to deal with all of these changes. In the past 24 to 48 hours, the focus has been on how we can realign round 5 so we can go ahead. ” he said.
“We have to spend the next few days trying to figure out what (rounds) 6 and 7 look like and how we can best deal with the changes in quarantine, especially in Queensland.”
– with AAP
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