The Central Murray and Golden Rivers Football Netball Leagues are set to restart their senior competitions this weekend following a decision by the Central Rivers Board earlier this week, albeit without crowds in attendance.
Following the easing of lockdown restrictions on July 27th by the Victorian Government, junior football and netball returned across both leagues last Saturday and now the senior competitions are set to follow to suit.
The Central Murray will play three more rounds, with the rescheduled Round 9 fixture to be played tomorrow and conclude with Rounds 18 and 12 over the following fortnight.
As a result of the now uneven draw, with the Cohuna Kangas and Mallee Eagles set to play one less game than the other nine clubs, the competition will revert to a win percentage in order to determine which clubs qualify for finals, instead of the traditional four points per victory.
The Golden Rivers on the other hand will play just two more rounds, with the rescheduled Rounds 8 and 9 to be played over the next fortnight.
Complicating matters in the Golden Rivers is the township of Hay now being classified outside the Victoria-NSW border bubble, meaning they are unable to cross into Victoria to play; and Victorians are unable to venture to Hay at the same time.
The result of this is that Hay will play their two remaining fixtures as home games at Moulamein against Macorna and Wandella.
It’s anticipated that the Grand Final for the Central Murray will be held on Saturday, September 18th and for the Golden Rivers on Saturday, September 11th, although this will of course be dependant on no further lockdowns or restrictions.
In accordance with Victorian government restrictions, no crowds will be attendance for games held in Victoria, with only those necessary for the day to proceed such as players, coaches, umpires, trainers or those acting in an official capacity allowed to attend.
One parent or guardian is also allowed to be present in the case of junior matches.NSW residents only on the other hand are allowed to attend games that are held in NSW, with venues capped at either one person per four square meters or 5000 spectators, whichever is the lesser of the two.
For those who reside south of the Murray River unfortunately, they are not permitted to attend any games in NSW unless they are present in an official capacity, meaning no Victorian spectators are allowed to attend any games this weekend.In a press release announced on Tuesday, the Central Rivers Board confirmed there was a number of reasons behind this week’s decision to return to play.
“The decision to play while still under current restrictions was based on a number of factors, including but not limited to – advice from the government that games can safely go ahead if clubs comply with restrictions, feedback from clubs indicating that there was enough interest in returning to play and the mental and physical wellbeing of players,” the statement read.
Other factors that were taken into consideration by the board were the impacts on recruitment and retention of players within the Central Murray and Golden Rivers competitions, when every other Victorian League in the area are preparing to resume their senior competitions as well as fitting in as many games as possible before finals to allow those teams competing some lead in preparation.
“We understand that not everyone will agree with this decision, however, we ask that you respect it; all options were duly considered, and this is what we believe is the most appropriate outcome for a majority of people,” the statement read.
