2021 Full Fixture

[Bitter but optimistic 12,090]

5 minutes ago, Lucifer's Hero said:

Sutton's warning for new AFL season

"While the permits will be easily secured should the virus be under control, Premier Dan Andrews said on Monday he would not hesitate to change the status of an interstate city from green to red within hours, potentially meaning teams would have to scramble home, thereby adding more fixture drama".

Does not bode well.  Having whole teams stranded interstate would be a terrible situation and would really derail a fixture, even a condensed one.

As I mentioned in an earlier post the personal toll of the 2020 hubs may make it difficult for the AFL to get buy in from the AFLPA and the AFLCA to set up hubs again. 

As things stand, I can't see the season going ahead without some sort of Hub or quarantining arrangement around travelling teams. If the players want to play, they will have to "buy in".

The circumstances surrounding last year's cancelled Melbourne Essendon game shows that we are, at any time, only one positive test away from a fixturing  disaster.

[Macca 9,710]

There is too much money at stake (Broadcast rights money predominately) for the games not to be played in some way (reduced quarters and/or reduced season again?)

There will be hubs or no hubs but the games will somehow be played regardless.

Remembering that the players are still 'supposed' to be paid so without any real income, the clubs will go broke

The NFL & EPL have continued on in a relentless manner despite both the USA & UK being ravaged by covid.  Mostly empty stadiums as well.  NBA as well

And many of the teams from those 3 competions have had numerous players test positive left, right & centre.  Still the games go on

TV ratings through the roof have resulted.  Ratings so good that the broadcasters may have to fork out more dosh in time. Same story here in Oz

Big sport & big money rules. The Sydney cricket test match went ahead despite widespread condemnation. 

The players will be told to play or take a huge pay cut or perhaps not get paid at all.  They'll play.  Money talks

Edited Tuesday at 10:23 AM by Macca

[titan_uranus 10,815]

1 hour ago, Macca said:

There is too much money at stake (Broadcast rights money predominately) for the games not to be played in some way (reduced quarters and/or reduced season again?)

There will be hubs or no hubs but the games will somehow be played regardless.

Remembering that the players are still 'supposed' to be paid so without any real income, the clubs will go broke

The NFL & EPL have continued on in a relentless manner despite both the USA & UK being ravaged by covid.  Mostly empty stadiums as well.  NBA as well

And many of the teams from those 3 competions have had numerous players test positive left, right & centre.  Still the games go on

TV ratings through the roof have resulted.  Ratings so good that the broadcasters may have to fork out more dosh in time. Same story here in Oz

Big sport & big money rules. The Sydney cricket test match went ahead despite widespread condemnation. 

The players will be told to play or take a huge pay cut or perhaps not get paid at all.  They'll play.  Money talks

Agree. If the AFL can do it in 2020, it can do it again in 2021.

The Victorian government has worked out a way to get 1200 tennis players/staff into Melbourne for the Australian Open. The NSW and Queensland governments have worked out a way to get the Sydney and Brisbane tests played.

The games will go ahead, whether as currently planned or with hubs or with quarantining or special rules or no crowds or whatever.

The hope is that the outbreaks we've seen in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane in the last month are aberrations, not the norm, and that the earliest doses of the vaccine go to hotel quarantine workers to prevent it getting back into the community once we get rid of it again.

[Jaded 17,223]

On 1/2/2021 at 2:09 PM, dl4e said:

100% correct.It just stuns me with the borders. It is a virus and there will be a vaccine in march. if WA wants to play hardball then sit out eagles and dockers for the season. mcgowan can get stuffed.

Yeah WA can play hardball and Freo and West Coast can spend the entire season in a Victorian hub and not play a single game up there. How sweet that would be! 

 

If a vaccine becomes available in late Feb /early March, it would not surprise me to see the AFL community get priority access to the vaccine. AFL is big money and nobody wants another interrupted season, not the AFL and not the states. 

Edited Wednesday at 05:35 AM by Jaded