COVID-19 Update Concerning Football NSW Administered Competitions
Further to our most recent communication concerning the latest recommendations from the NSW Government, and in particular NSW Health, concerning the conduct of junior/youth sport in the state, we wish to provide an update in regard to the impact on Football NSW administered competitions.
As you are aware, following a briefing from the Chief Medical Officer late last week, Football NSW made some changes to the manner in which our sport is played at the junior/youth level across our regional Associations and Branches, essentially restricting travel across our country zones, and in to and out of Sydney.
While acknowledging that junior/youth football at the ‘grassroots’ level was generally played in local Association leagues, the Government was concerned with what has been referred to as the ‘pre-elite’ level and with teams at that level travelling across the Sydney each weekend. For our purposes, we regard the ‘pre-elite’ level to be the SAP and NPL Youth levels. Further discussions with the Government have resulted in us reviewing the manner in which we conduct these competitions. Clearly our desire remains to support the Government’s recommendations so as to ensure that football can continue to be played.
In support of the Government’s recommendations, in particular, the recommendation to cease activities that result in the mixing of participants from different regions of Sydney, Football NSW has made the difficult decision that, for the next five weeks, teams playing at the SAP and NPL Youth levels will play locally in smaller ‘hubs’. With this in mind, Football NSW is redesigning fixtures ahead of this weekend and for the following four weekends.
Please note that the above only applies to Junior and Youth Football NSW Competitions (U18 and below), that is, SAP, Girls’ SAP, AYL, GCL and NPL Youth (boys and girls). So as to create greater playing opportunities, we are also considering the possibility of having teams from different competitions play against each other within localised areas. For example, an NPL Youth Boys team may play against an AYL team and a GCL team may play against an NPL Youth Girls team).
The match schedules for Week 1 are set out below. The match schedules for Weeks 2 – 5 are currently being worked on and we are aiming to finalise and communicate these by the end of this week.
Week 1: Saturday, 29 August and Sunday, 30 August – Junior and Youth Football NSW Competitions (U18 and below):
The main principles followed by Football NSW in arriving at the adjusted fixtures are as follows:
- As much as possible, maintain the current schedule for this weekend’s home teams to assist with venue bookings and referee appointments while complying with NSW Health recommendations; and
- As much as possible, the matches of away teams are moved so that they are playing opponents more closely located to them;
Please click the following links for the list for this weekend’s fixtures:
- Boys – Youth Supplementary (NPL Youth, NPL 2 Youth, AYL) – Click Here
- Girls – Youth Supplementary (NPL Youth, NPL 2 Youth, GCL) – Click Here
- SAP Supplementary – Click Here
- Girls SAP Supplementary – Click Here
Week 2: Saturday, 5 September and Sunday, 6 September – Week 5: Saturday, 26 September and Sunday, 27 September:
As stated above, the match schedules for Weeks 2 – 5 are currently being worked on and we are aiming to finalise and communicate these by the end of this week.
Please Note: The recommendations recently released by NSW Health apply for a six week period. That period commenced on Wednesday, 19 August 2020 and is due to expire on Tuesday, 29 September 2020. While NSW Health may extend the period that the recommendations remain in place, Football NSW continues to plan towards scheduling Competition fixtures through to what is currently the final weekend of the season, i.e. Saturday, 31 October and Sunday, 1 November. We will continue to monitor and work within the recommendations of NSW Health and, if anything changes, we will adjust schedules accordingly. Furthermore, during this period Football NSW’s technical staff will continue to be out across the grounds, working with Club Technical Directors and Coaches to identify talented players.
Football NSW Senior Competitions:
In line with NSW Health recommendations, Football NSW Senior Competitions will continue as scheduled with COVID-19 Safety Plans in place. The following competition will continue as scheduled:
- NPL NSW Men’s, NPL 2 NSW Men’s, NPL 3 NSW Men’s, NPL 4 NSW Men’s – U20s and 1stGrade; and
- NPL NSW Women’s, NPL 2 NSW Women’s – Reserve Grade and 1st
We trust that everyone understands the ever-changing landscape that we face and we appreciate the ongoing cooperation and support of all clubs, coaches, players, referees and parents.
We recognise that some other sports may take a different approach and that, at school, students from all parts of Sydney will be mixing with each other. However, we have made the above decisions based on what we think is best for our participants and the broader community and to seek to avoid the NSW Government turning what are currently recommendations into mandated requirements. We believe we have arrived at a reasonable compromise which allows participants to continue to play the game we all love while respecting the recommendations issued by the health experts.
As we have always stated, we will continue to support the NSW Government’s measures to minimise the transmission of COVID-19 and we will do whatever is necessary to provide a safe and healthy environment for our participants.
