Locking down an option

AFL examining re-start

Influential coronavirus cabinet member Eddie McGuire says the AFL is seriously considering a plan to resume its 2020 season using three hubs including Tasmania.

The Collingwood president – who sits on the AFL’s coronavirus taskforce – said the league was weighing up whether to restart the season in Western Australia, South Australia and the Apple Isle.

Under the proposal, three teams could be based in Hobart, three in Launceston and six in South Australia and Western Australia.

“That is something that is being seriously looked at and discussed and those three states in particular might just be able to get the season started a little earlier than we might otherwise,” McGuire said on Triple M.

Asked whether the league could isolate three groups of six teams, AFL football boss Steve Hocking told the Herald

Sun: “It’s one of the things we’re working through with the clubs. We’ve been working closely with the GMs of football, the coaches and high performance managers, holding meetings every couple of days.”

While Northern Territory (26) has the lowest rate of COVID-19, McGuire added: “Taking into account that you have got to be careful of course, even Alice Springs or Darwin, we have to be very careful of our indigenous population, particularly in the remote areas of Australia, so they may not get the spot.”

He said the proposal would limit the potential for coronavirus to spread through the competition and further delay the season.

“As Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland open up, you can then roll into those states as well. It’s a talking point and I think it’s something that has a fair bit of merit,” he said.

McGuire conceded the plan would need the commitment of players, who would be required to be away from their families for several weeks in some instances.

The AFL remains hopeful of resuming on May 31, although that date could be pushed back later this month.

Sydney Swans coach John Longmire backed the move.

“We’re open to anything. I know the NRL is talking about something similar up here, going into hubs and being open to having multiple games over short periods of time,” Longmire told SEN. “We want to get the game going again.”