Perth decider could be staged in October

THE AFL will not hesitate to push back its season decider into October and force a three-week break upon the grand final teams if Perth is locked down with a last-minute Covid outbreak.

AFL chief executive Gillon McLachlan on Tuesday finally confirmed the league’s biggest game would be held at Perth Stadium on September 25 after agreeing to a deal with the Victorian government.

The post-preliminary final bye will allow Perth to host a Sunday Brownlow Medal at the start of a grand week – with players from as many as six AFL teams at the big night, a grand final parade, a Carbine Club lunch and presentation of the two teams to tens of thousands of footy fans leading into the playoff.

The grand final is expected to be a twilight event in Perth, but McLachlan would not confirm a starting time.

He would say only that it would be later than the customary 2.30pm and that an announcement would be made in coming weeks.

A 5.30pm opening bounce in Perth would be 7.30pm for the eastern states. Despite calls to push ahead with a September 18 decider, McLachlan said the pre-grand final bye allowed all clubs to quarantine for 14 days and then be allowed out in the Perth community for at least a week.

The Sunday night Brownlow would have attendees from two competing clubs, with contenders from Adelaide and even Queensland a good chance to fly in for the September 19 event.

The AFL will not disclose how much it has secured from the WA government for the right to host the game but

Queensland was understood to have paid as much as $15m for last year’s Gabba grand final.

McLachlan said the AFL would be prepared to postpone its grand final by a week if WA premier Mark McGowan banned Perth Stadium crowds in the event of a handful of cases in grand final week.

He will be part of a group of about 25 AFL operations staff who will leave for Perth in coming days to pull off the second grand final in a row outside of Victoria.

He admitted Covid cases emerging in grand final week would likely push back the decider but said an outbreak could happen in any state.

“It plays on my mind. It would apply in most states right now,” he said.

“It is clearly relevant in Perth but it would apply in Adelaide, there was a Tasmanian game cancelled in an hour. That issue applies everywhere given the way people are controlling this pandemic which is quick, dramatic lockdowns. We won’t play our grand final in front of no people so we will work through that if it happens.”