Super League’s French club Catalans Dragons have asked the NRL’s Warriors for relocation advice after professional sport in France was shut down until September.
Catalans – the home of ex-NRL playmaker James Maloney and cross- code star Israel Folau – have vowed to see out the 2020 season with the UK Super League reportedly set to return from its coronavirus-inspired break by July.
However, the Dragons may be forced to move to England for the rest of the season after French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe announced this week that all major public events would be prohibited for the next five months.
Catalans coach Steve McNamara – an ex-Sydney Roosters and Warriors assistant – has turned to his former NRL outfit in New Zealand as they mull over the expensive option of relocating to a UK hub.
McNamara has been keeping a close eye on the plight of the Warriors who plan to move to Sydney on the weekend for the NRL’s proposed May 28 restart due to pandemic restrictions.
Asked if Catalans would relocate to England, McNamara told Sky Sports UK: “Financially is the big one, because obviously it will be a very very expensive project.
“I’ve actually been speaking to the New Zealand Warriors director because they’re in a similar position.
“Now I’m definitely not saying right now that we are going to relocate to England but it is one of the options that is available.
“But you’ve got to look at the English government rules.
“At the minute there is no quarantine period, so if it was now, as long as it was safe we could go backwards and forwards.
“If those rules change we have to relocate to England and we might have to stay there for a lengthy period of time.”
McNamara said the club would seek more details from the French government but dismissed speculation that the ban would force them to sit out the rest of the season.
“Whatever the (rest of the) season looks like, we will find a way to do that,” he said.
“We obviously have to get more information on whether we can train or not train.
“At least we know that September is the line in the sand, so we can start to think about what we can and cannot do at the moment.”
