NRL Round 20 Halted - Lockdown Complications

[Graham]

As you may have read on our R20 Match Thread, the Saturday games have been postponed.

Quote

ARL commission chairman Peter V’landys says the NRL won’t be shut down after it was forced to postpone all of Saturday’s fixtures as he revealed the game’s contingency plans to reschedule three games.

It comes after Queensland Government announced the strictest lockdown in the state’s history, forcing the cancellation of Super Saturday – Souths v the Dragons (3pm), Raiders v Knights (5.30pm) and Storm v Panthers (7.35pm). 

V’landys revealed the NRL will aim to have three games at Suncorp on Sunday and the remaining two games on Monday.

 

[Futtocks]

Has Phil Gould blamed it on the World Cup yet?

[Farmduck]

As part of a revised draw, the NRL announced that:

– South Sydney Rabbitohs’ game with the St George Illawarra Dragons, originally scheduled to take place on Saturday in Rockhampton at 3pm, will be played on Sunday at 6.25pm at Suncorp Stadium.

 

– Canberra Raiders’ top-eight battle with the Newcastle Knights, originally scheduled to take place on Saturday at Suncorp Stadium at 5.30pm, will be played on Sunday at 1.50pm at Suncorp Stadium.

– Melbourne Storm’s grand final rematch with the Penrith Panthers, originally scheduled to take place on Saturday at Suncorp Stadium at 7.35pm, will be played on Sunday at 4.05pm at Suncorp Stadium.

– Sunday’s clash between Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs and the Gold Coast Titans, and Manly Sea Eagles’ match-up with the Cronulla Sharks will now be played at 6pm and 8.05pm respectively on Monday evening.

[JohnM]

What's different that makes playing Sunday OK, but playing Sat not? 

[Farmduck]

4 minutes ago, JohnM said:

What's different that makes playing Sunday OK, but playing Sat not? 

All the Saturday games were cancelled then V'Landys negotiated a deal with the Qld Govt. If the deal hadn't been struck there wouldn't have been any Sunday or Monday games either. I guess the difference is that V'Landys was able to convince Annastacia that the existing NRL protocols were already tighter than the Qld general lockdown. By the time the Qld Govt agreed, it was too late for the Saturday games.

[Anita Bath]

Vlandys is de facto premier of Queensland at the moment. Government official states categorically no football, community or professional, until end of current lockdown on Tuesday. No conditions, no qualifications. Vlandys calls up the premier and within hours the games are back on.

Meanwhile the residents of SE Queensland are prisoners in their own homes.  

[unapologetic pedant]

15 hours ago, Farmduck said:

 I guess the difference is that V'Landys was able to convince Annastacia that the existing NRL protocols were already tighter than the Qld general lockdown. 

Why did the QLD government not already know this?

They probably did know, but still felt obliged to instantly obliterate everything as part of the drama of a snap lockdown.

Covid has given governments around the world a licence to ruin plans and livelihoods. In Oz, the wrecking instinct seems even more impulsive than elsewhere.

5 hours ago, Anita Bath said:

 No conditions, no qualifications. Vlandys calls up the premier and within hours the games are back on.  

When talking to State politicians about NRL matters, PVL is clearly the sane and reasonable one in the conversation. When he addresses global RL matters, he either loses his mind or his integrity.