As the professional sporting world reels, the clock may go back full circle.
The Highlanders will arrive in Dunedin tomorrow morning and all 36 players and management of their touring squad will head straight into two weeks of self-isolation as the strict regulations around Covid-19 take hold.
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The international twenty20 cricket game which was set to be played between the Black Caps and Australia at the University of Otago Oval on March 24 was scrubbed on Saturday night.
A sold-out crowd of 7500 was expected for the T20 game.
The Highlanders were set to host the Lions this Saturday and then the Crusaders on March 28, but both of these games have been postponed.
The Super Rugby competition was suspended early yesterday and the Highlanders’ game in Buenos Aires to be played yesterday was cancelled with the game declared a draw.
The side was unable to arrange flights to NZ before the deadline of 1am today, so would have to go into self-isolation.
The financial impact for the Highlanders will be tough as it will lose income from the hosting of two games while there would also be a monetary hit to DVML from not hosting the T20 game.
The Super Rugby competition may come back in another form and more details will emerge in a few days.
Further afield, football competitions have been suspended through Europe along with golf tournaments, basketball leagues and championships in various sports.
Australia imposed the same 14-day stand-down as NZ and that may hit the A League as the Phoenix and the Melbourne Victory played in Wellington last night. The NRL is continuing behind closed doors with the Warriors based in Australia while Supercars and Formula One are in limbo.
The netball match between the Steel and the Magic at the Edgar Centre tonight was scheduled to go ahead.
What will go on is club sport with the premier club rugby competition set to begin this Friday in Dunedin. Pre-season club netball will start tomorrow night.
Professional leagues involve travel and crossing borders. Club rugby goes to Port Chalmers or Mosgiel. Club netball to the Edgar Centre. Club sport has been around way before professional sport. Sometimes the small survive.
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Comments
I hope that we see a return to a domestic competition that is not compacted and includes all NZ players. Keep the current provincially based teams across the nation and build a championship around that. Maybe we could call it something like the National Provincial Championship, or the NPC for short. Sounds kinda catchy.
I suspect the DCC will recover the loss of revenue by passing on a rates increase to the Dunedin public.
Can't you and your anti DCC mates just give it a rest once in a while.
I suspect you maybe right.
its only sport ! hardly important on the grand scheme of things