Vic clubs face extended AFL road trips

Collingwood and Geelong are set to spend more than three weeks on the road from July, with more matches likely to be played in other states after they complete their stint in Western Australia.

AFL fixtures boss Travis Auld says all clubs face the prospect of spending four or five weeks away from home at some stage this season, similar to the time WA clubs West Coast and Fremantle will serve in Queensland.

It comes as the AFL grapples with reworking its fixture on the run after the Queensland government announced fresh coronavirus protocols that forced an immediate reshuffle of this week’s matches.

The Magpies and Cats had been set to play each other while in quarantine in Perth in round seven and rotate matches against West Coast and Fremantle before returning home.

But Auld indicated their road trips would likely be extended.

“If the quarantine conditions work for (clubs) then I think that four to five-week period seems like it works ok,” Auld told 3AW.

“It may not be, under these circumstances, four to five weeks in the same place.

“If you look at Geelong and Collingwood, for example, they’ll go to WA for three weeks and they may come back (to Victoria) via one of the other states now.

“They could come back via New South Wales or Queensland. We’ve got that option that we need to explore.”

Auld also indicated other Victorian clubs would be sent to Queensland in the near future under similar conditions to the two clubs being sent to WA.

The AFL understands time spent in New South Wales, for example, before arriving in Queensland would count towards their quarantine periods.

Clubs could also be sent for multiple matches in South Australia if that state’s borders open as planned in July.

Auld said clubs and broadcasters wanted two weeks’ notice for fixtures, and that crowds returning in some states also presented a challenge.

“As that starts to come into play, that’s a factor we need to take into account in terms of giving fans enough notice to get a ticket to get to games,” Auld said.

“The complexity continues but certainly the flexibility is really important for us at the moment.”

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