CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAK ‘NRL should go on’ if player safety ensured
RUGBY league is in the throes of arguably its murkiest era.
But, should parameters that ensure player safety continue to be in effect, the show must go on.
That is the opinion of North Queensland Cowboys CEO Jeff Reibel.
Coronavirus has thrown rugby league into uncharted territory, and with the problem changing day-to-day, NRL clubs are somewhat in limbo over how effectively they can move forward with the season.
But Reibel said it had been business as usual at the Cowboys and praised the relentless efforts of the club’s staff to maintain order.
He said if player safety was ensured, the competition should continue.
“I think the way Peter V’landys and Todd Greenberg, and indeed the whole NRL, has approached this gives us the opportunity to continue the competition,” Reibel said.
“This is an evolving situation and I think the important thing is at the moment, the advice we’ve got is it is safe to play under certain conditions.
“Should that continue the way it is, yes we should be playing round two under the conditions given to us.
“We need to have a look at all that modelling, but there is no doubt the preference for us is to continue playing rugby league as long as it is safe for our players to do so.”
With fans locked out of NRL games until otherwise announced, revenue for clubs through venue gates will be lost.
It will also mean club members will be unable to attend prepaid for fixtures until this storm is weathered.
Reibel said given the situation was revolved around the health and wellbeing of the community it would be unfair to speculate on the financial future of the club.
But he said given no plans had been made for the competition beyond this weekend, membership reimbursement had not yet been discussed.
“It’s a moving feast, at the moment we haven’t missed a home game so what we need to do is get through round two and let’s have a look at what that looks like as we go into round three,” Reibel said.
“The messages of support for the club have been quite overwhelming.
“What we’re doing is we’re in proactive contact with all stakeholders of our club – members, corporates and partners – around what our next steps are.”
On the field, Cowboys coach Paul Green said his players were in a strong headspace to continue playing regardless of who was in attendance.
The club have been in contact with the NRL to ensure their travel plans would not be a detriment to their match preparation.
But Green said he and his team refused to let the situation be a distraction and their performance on the field would not be impacted by it.
“I think like everyone, not just our players but humans in general, don’t really deal with the unknown,” Green said,
“That’s what’s probably most off-putting.
“There’s a lot of information out there, but from what I gather our guys have been pretty good at worrying about the things they can control.”