Summer sprint: During the nine-a-side pre-season tournament staged by Echuca Football Netball Club, A.J. Mills, RIley Milburn and Keiran Hogan are involved in a fierce battle for possession. Photos: Josh Huntly
Echuca’s return to pre-season football training may be delayed as a result of almost a third of its senior team affected by COVID-19.
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Senior co-coach Simon Maddox said the club was due to return to training next Monday.
"We will be monitoring our playing personnel this week before making a decision,“ Maddox said.
“We’ve definitely had some players contract COVID, but we haven’t made any call on a return to training yet.
“It will affect everyone at some stage. We will be flexible with our plans going forward.”
There has been no directive from AFL Victoria Country relating to any conditions on pre-season training.
It appears unlikely there will be a return to the 2020-21 training conditions which included player bubbles and reduced training sizes.
Maddox said the number of players affected by COVID-19 during the festive season could impact on the ability for the club to train as a whole.
Under pressure: COVID-19 cases in the playing ranks at Echuca may cause an interrupted re-start to pre-season training on Monday at Victoria Park.
“Pretty much every young bloke, between 18 and 25, has been affected. There were more than half-a-dozen — everyone who went to the Boxing Day Test, to a music festival or to a nightclub during the holidays,” he said.
Echuca was the leading club in managing the interruptions to its 2021 GVFL season, which has stood it in good stead to handle any pre-season issues with players who have tested positive to COVID-19.
“We haven’t been informed of training protocols or anything like that,” Maddox said.
“It is just a matter of monitoring how many players are in isolation.
“If anyone is uncomfortable attending training, we have full confidence in our boys being able to manage their fitness.”
The club has not shut down its gymnasium, although it has had limited use during the off-season.
“No-one was really using it over that period, which was good,” Maddox said.
“We really wanted the players to have a good break, because we had trained pretty hard before Christmas.
"At some stage this week we will make a decision about a return to training on Monday.
“(Co-coach) Andrew (Walker) and myself are discussing that now with Ash Byrne (club president),” Maddox said.
The proposition of training in four groups of 10 or some other arrangement to avoid any further COVID-19 complications could be an option for the club.
“We are very flexible. Maybe it is better for our guys to be struck down in the summer months, it might mean they have an immunity in the winter,” Maddox said.
The club is in a strong position entering the 2022 season, with Echuca United best-and-fairest Matt Wise returning to the club.
He played under-18 football with Echuca before crossing to United and winning the club’s champion player award
Toby Hore from Moama has also been training with the club, along with star recruit Sam Reid.
Angus Byrne and Daniel Willis are also considered as good as recruits, having spent time on the sidelines with injury.
Season fixtures for the Goulburn Valley, Heathcote and Picola leagues have been released, but there is still no sign of the Murray League draw.
Moama has had a big off-season, recently adding two-time Kyabram premiership captain Josh Vick to its playing list.
The Magpies will be led into the new season by Sam Shelton, while Tongala will again assume premiership favouritism after a number of re-signings under coach Jordan Souter.
The Riv will speak with Echuca United coach Farran Priest about its preparation for the new season in Friday’s edition.
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