Apollo focus on health, not NRL structure

The NRL’s Project Apollo team will meet as planned on Wednesday to discuss health measures but a revised season structure may not be finalised until next week.

Just a day after Todd Greenberg’s departure as chief executive, the NRL pressed on with their plans to restart the season on May 28 on Tuesday.

Commissioners were locked in a pre-scheduled meeting for the majority of the day, while broadcast talks are still ongoing.

The outcome of those conversations with Nine and Foxtel – which have been describe as positive – will be crucial for the NRL’s planning and what shape the season takes.

In the meantime, it’s understood Wednesday’s innovations committee meeting under Wayne Pearce will focus on the biosecurity matters around the game’s return.

It’s expected medical protocols and safety guidelines for teams and players will be the key talking point, rather than what format the competition will take.

Several biosecurity measures have already been flagged, including blood testing players, temperature checks and the logging of family members’ movements.

Wednesday’s meeting had already been pushed back from last Friday, after broadcast talks continued late into the week.

There had been some thought it could be pushed back even further, given the chaotic nature of the start of the week.

But the NRL confirmed it will still go ahead on Wednesday, with stand-in chief executive Andrew Abdo already holding a seat on the committee.

Pearce and his committee had originally hoped the structure of the season – including when State of Origin will be played – would be clearer by this week.

But the league is insistent time is still on its side with the competition’s planned return still more than six weeks away.

Several clubs are waiting on those plans before mapping out their own season.

North Queensland, Brisbane, the Gold Coast are all likely to have to set up camp in NSW while the same is possible of Melbourne depending on Victorian government restrictions.

The Warriors are still waiting to have an exemption made to allow them to enter Australia with the country’s borders shut.

Players and staff will likely have to spend two weeks in quarantine on arriving in Australia, although the NRL could push for them to be allowed to train in that time.

Clubs had originally planned for their players to start training together again in less than a fortnight on May 4, although coaches have agreed to wait until the Warriors are also able to do so.

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