Football NSW COVID Update

UPDATE Friday 25th June 2021

As you are likely aware, the Premier of NSW has this morning announced a stay-at-home order applying until midnight next Friday to any person who lives or works in any of the four Local Government Areas (LGAs) below:

• City of Sydney;
• Randwick;
• Waverley; and
• Woollahra.

This appears to apply to anyone who has worked in any of those areas in the last 14 days. The Premier was quoted this morning saying:

“For example, I’m captured in that. I don’t live in those areas but I work there and have done so in the last fortnight, so therefore, I’m captured by that stay at home order.”

Any person who lives or works in any of these four LGAs must stay home until midnight next Friday unless it is for an essential reason.

The reasons you may leave your home include:

• Shopping for food or other essential goods and services;
• Medical care or compassionate needs;
• Exercise outdoors in groups of 10 or fewer; or
• Essential work, or education, where you cannot work or study from home.

The measures announced today extend upon the measures announced yesterday and those measures are now extended to midnight next Friday.

We do not yet have a Public Health Order to rely upon for the exact parameters of the order and we are relying on the recent NSW Government press release available here.

Given that these new restrictions also apply to people who work in the Sydney CBD, this will be a very large number of people, and this will affect a large number of players, parents, coaches, managers, officials and other volunteers. This may affect many of your fixtures due to player, team official and match official unavailability.

Process to Request Postponement for this weekend’s fixtures:

• Where a team has more than three (3) players (includes parents for travel purposes) that are bound by the above stay at home orders, Football NSW will work to postpone the teams scheduled fixture.
  • Please respond directly to this email with the request to postpone and include the following:
    • Age Grade
    • Players First Name and Last Name

The Competitions Department will work ASAP to review and turn around the requests and postpone matches where required.

If Club has any other concerns with the scheduling for this weekend please let us know.

This is a very serious situation and we need people to behave accordingly.

You will need to communicate to your participants that if you live or work in any of the four LGAs above, stay home.

 

Thursday 24th June 2021

The NSW Government released an updated Public Health Order (PHO)– available here.

There are restrictions that will apply to all of Greater Sydney, as defined in the map linked here: https://www.nsw.gov.au/covid-19/rules/greater-sydney#greater-sydney-map

The key message is that clubs can continue to conduct football activities but that existing COVID-19 Safety Plans be reviewed and that steps be taken to ensure compliance with rules around masks, movement and social distancing.

Football NSW will be postponing some matches and will work directly with clubs impacted by postponements.

Masks:

• Anyone attending football matches or training must wear a mask.
• People may remove their mask only for strenuous physical exercise (e.g. to warm up, train, play or referee), and must put their masks back on at all other times, including spectators, coaches, managers, substitutes etc.
• Similar to earlier orders, there are other exemptions that apply including for children under 12, people with autism or intellectual disabilities and other health conditions.
• More detail is available here: https://www.health.nsw.gov.au/Infectious/covid-19/Pages/public-health-orders.aspx#face-coverings

Movement of People:

• People who either live or work in seven named LGAs (Bayside, City of Sydney, Canada Bay, Inner West, Randwick, Waverley and Woollahra) may not leave the Metropolitan area (as defined in the linked map: https://www.nsw.gov.au/covid-19/rules/greater-sydney#metropolitan-sydney-map) without a “reasonable excuse” (see Schedule 1 of the PHO).
• The practical meaning of this as it affects football is that if you live or work in one of these areas, you cannot play football outside of the Metropolitan area.

Social Distancing & Change Rooms:

• Capacity restrictions now apply so that spaces must have no more than one person per 4 metres squared, and masking also applies.
• Compliant use of change rooms is now likely to be impractical, and Football NSW recommends that it is a commonsense step to close change rooms. If Changerooms are in use, please adhere to the 1 Person per 4 square meter rule, comply with the 1.5 physical distancing rule at all times and wearing of masks are mandated in accordance with the public health order. Additionally, minimise time spent within the change rooms and ensure the change rooms are cleaned and disinfected regularly and especially in between matches.

Capacity Limits and Mandatory COVID-19 Safety Plan Requirements:

All sport and recreation activities that take place outdoors fall under one of the four categories below.  In addition to the PHO issued on 23 June 2021, clubs should also have regard to the PHO issued on 1 June 2021.

Club must determine which their facilities fall within and must have and comply with the relevant and up to date COVID-19 Safety Plan.

1. A recreation facility (major)

A “recreation facility (major)” means a building or place used for large-scale sporting or recreation activities that are attended by large numbers of people whether regularly or periodically, and includes theme parks, sports stadiums, showgrounds, racecourses and motor racing tracks.

The occupier of a “recreation facility (major)”, must ensure the maximum number of persons on the premises does not exceed the greater of:

• the total of:
• 50% of the fixed seating capacity of the facility; and
• 1 person per 4 square metres of space of any unfixed seating areas of the facility (Option A); OR
• 1 person per 4 square metres of space in the facility (Option B).

If the occupier of a “recreation facility (major)”, calculates the number of persons based on the percentage of the fixed seating capacity (i.e. Option A above), the occupier must ensure;

• admission to the premises is by way of a ticket; and
• all persons (other than employees) are assigned to specific seats.

Therefore, clubs whose facility is a “recreation facility (major)” may wish to calculate the maximum number of persons that may be admitted using Option B above.

1. A non-controlled outdoor gathering (up to 200 people)

These activities are restricted to 200 people (unless the gathering is a COVID-safe outdoor gathering with a COVID-19 Safety Plan – available here).

Football NSW encourages all clubs to have a COVID-19 Safety Plan in place regardless of the number of participants in attendance.

1. A COVID-19 safe outdoor gathering (up to 5,000 people)

The organiser of a “COVID-19 safe outdoor gathering” must ensure that the number of participants in the gathering is the lesser of:

• the number of persons equivalent to 1 person per 2 square metres of space of the premises in which the activity is conducted, or
• 5,000 persons.

The club must have and comply with the relevant COVID-19 Safety Plan (available here).

1. A controlled outdoor gathering (up to 10,000 people)

A “controlled outdoor public gathering” means an outdoor public gathering in an area:

• that is enclosed or bounded by fencing or another form of barrier, and
• access to which is controlled by way of a ticket, and
• in relation to which all persons, other than persons engaged in work, are assigned to specific seats or to a seating area.

The organiser of a “controlled outdoor public gathering” must ensure the maximum number of persons participating in the gathering is the lesser of:

• the number of persons equivalent to 1 person per 2 square metres of space of the premises in which the activity is conducted, or
• 10,000 persons.

The club must have and comply with the relevant COVID-19 Safety Plan (available here).

The above information is to the best of our knowledge at this time and is provided as a guide only. 

All clubs must review the relevant Public Health Orders and ensure compliance.  

Football NSW continues to monitor communication issued by government and will keep you informed as any additional information comes to light.

The Football NSW Competitions Team will stay in contact with clubs to assist with any issues or concerns relating to the implementation of their COVID-19 Safety Plan and other requirements.

Stay Safe Football Family!