Michael Burgess: How the NRL restart could become an impossible dream for the Warriors

COMMENT:

The Warriors may have to leave for Australia as soon as next Sunday to meet the various deadlines imposed by the NRL for their ambitious competition restart date of May 28.

Once the squad leave the country, some might not see their families again until September.

Seems like a crazy situation for Warriors chief executive Cameron George and his staff, right?

Process that for a minute, then wonder if this idea is not increasingly becoming an impossible dream for the Auckland club.

Most of the world remains in lockdown, with planes grounded across the globe.

Companies are telling their staff to stay at home, work in their lounges and to not travel.

But the Warriors could be asked to board a jet next weekend — if the club can find one — and fly to Sydney.

That's because of the NRL's timelines.

If the competition kicks off again on May 28 as surmised, the governing body has instructed that teams can begin training in the first week of next month.

But the Warriors will also have to serve a two-week isolation stretch on entering Australia, so need to be in New South Wales by mid-April.

That prospective fortnight after arrival is one of the most difficult aspects of this scenario.

The Warriors during their 2020 season opener against the Knights in Newcastle. Photo / Photosport

One proposal mooted sees the Warriors enter a confinement period, essentially restricted to a hotel, where they would be served three meals a day and wouldn't be able to wander too far from their rooms.

The Herald understands the other NRL clubs have been told they won't be allowed to train during this period, to be fair to the Warriors, but how can anyone realistically enforce that?

Will it be self-policed? If so, good luck.

It's hard to fully reconcile the inequity of the situation, as the players from the nine Sydney clubs will sleep in their own beds and see their families, while some other teams won't.

There are more, so far unanswered, questions for the Warriors.

●What if a player has to leave the bubble to go into hospital (due to an injury or something similar)? Does the isolation clock restart?

●Will the club be given dispensation to have extra players?

●Can some of the families relocate to be with their partners and husbands?

●And will any of the Warriors be allowed to travel home — and then return — in case of a family emergency?

More than one-third of the Warriors' 30-man first grade squad have children, and many are very young.

It would be nice to imagine the players could pop home during a bye round or State of Origin but that would need isolation rules on both sides of the Tasman to be relaxed considerably, which is unlikely in the short to medium term.

So imagine the dining table conversations taking place this week: "Darling, I'll have to go ... and I'll see you in September."

Sure, there was the situation in March when the Warriors were forced to stay on in Australia after their round one match.

That was difficult because it was unplanned and sudden but everyone knew then that their stay would be measured in days or weeks, not months.

This is different, and who would blame the Warriors if they decided it simply wasn't possible?