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A-League shuts down

"The health and safety of our fans, players, volunteers & staff has always been the overriding consideration for us," says FFA.

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A-League season has now been shutdown, effective immediately, following on from AFL and NRL suspensions.

The decision was made after a series of measures put in by the FFA to try and finish the A-League season amid the ongoing global coronavirus pandemic and was met with the “unanimous support” of all 11 clubs.

“These are unprecedented times,” CEO James Johnson said. “This is the unanimous decision of the FFA Board and the Hyundai A-League clubs to postpone the competition.

“The decision has been made in consultation with the national working committee for coronavirus.

“The FFA will review the postponement in a couple of weeks with a date set for April 22.”

In a further statement released to the media, Johnson added: “Our priority is to ensure the safety of both the football community and the community at large. As each passing day raises additional concerns for the safety of both, it is imperative that we follow the lead of Governments at National and State level and take the necessary precautionary and proactive measures and in doing so play our part in preventing the spread and impact of COVID-19.

“To get so close to completing the competition, only to pull up a few weeks short, has been heartbreaking for the players, clubs and fans. That said, the health and safety of our fans, players, volunteers and staff has always been the overriding consideration for us. That is fundamentally what led – with the unanimous support of the State and Territory Member Federations – to the suspension of grassroots football until 14 April 2020. Today’s decision was equally difficult to make but it is borne form the same rationale.

“As the largest club-based participation sport with nearly two million participants, we have a clear and obvious duty to play our part in doing whatever we can to support the efforts to slow down the spread of COVID-19.

“On behalf of FFA Board and each Hyundai A-League Club, we thank the players for their assistance during these extraordinary times. We have done everything in our power to ensure the physical and mental welfare of the players and club staff and this decision means that, like the majority of Australians, they can now return home to be with their families during this difficult time.

“We’d like to thank our members, sponsors, volunteers and fans for their continued support during this unprecedented time.”

Source: FOX Sports

One Response

  1. Interesting that during some post match interviews the players felt that by playing they were providing some escapist entertainment for their fans and TV audiences. While the A League teams kept isolated, monitoring and maintaining their own health management the only issue was a political one with the closing of state borders.
    I’m sure this will be closely looked at if all the effected team competitions manage to continue next season.

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