Supporters key in rugby league’s return, insists Barrie McDermott

LIVE sport is under starter’s orders with horse racing set to be first out of the traps today, but rugby league’s return to normality still looks far from imminent.

The Government gave the green light on Saturday for competitive sport in England to restart from today, behind closed doors.

A race meeting is scheduled for Newcastle this afternoon, the Premier League is poised to return on June 17 and Championship three days later on June 20.

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Making the announcement, Oliver Dowden, the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, insisted; “the British sporting recovery has begun”, but in rugby league there are concerns the game can not afford to come out of hibernation just yet.

PICTURE BY VAUGHN RIDLEY/SWPIX.COM - Rugby League - Super League Grand Final 2007 - St. Helens Saints Barry McDermott.PICTURE BY VAUGHN RIDLEY/SWPIX.COM - Rugby League - Super League Grand Final 2007 - St. Helens Saints Barry McDermott.
PICTURE BY VAUGHN RIDLEY/SWPIX.COM - Rugby League - Super League Grand Final 2007 - St. Helens Saints Barry McDermott.

A proposal from Super League clubs would see the top-flight competition restarted in August, to maximise the number of fixtures played with spectators present.

Though nothing has yet been agreed, the hope is crowds will be permitted from October. Players have been furloughed and are currently keeping fit alone, but coaches will have been encouraged by suggestions they could now return to training while remaining on the paid leave scheme, under which the Government guarantees up to 80 per cent of wages.

The Rugby Football League will attend a meeting of sports’ medical officers today, but Barrie McDermott, the former Leeds Rhinos and Great Britain forward who is now a leading pundit for Sky Television, feels the code should not rush back.

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“There is no doubt we will go ahead without crowds for a period of time, we have to view that as a way forward,” said McDermott.

Leeds's Mikolaj Oledzki is congratulated by Callum McLelland on his try against Toronto.Leeds's Mikolaj Oledzki is congratulated by Callum McLelland on his try against Toronto.
Leeds's Mikolaj Oledzki is congratulated by Callum McLelland on his try against Toronto.

But he stressed: “Having listened to people’s views and concerns, I don’t think our game will be played for that long without crowds, because they are so integral to the atmosphere and not just that, but also the revenue they bring.

“There are three main indicators of when we come back and what it looks like: broadcast partners, sponsors and the key stakeholders, the people who pay money at the turnstiles.

“Essentially what everybody is saying is we have to minimise the number of games played without crowds, and you have to listen to the majority.”

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The financial repercussions of playing behind locked gates are worrying for clubs who have already gone almost three months without matchday income.

But McDermott said supporters have to be factored into any restart plan.

“You have to think of the fans,” he insisted. “You have to think of people coming into the ground and getting that morale and energy boost being at a live game gives you.

“Horse racing is completely different. It is a fantastic day out, but the gambling element of it is the main priority. For the Premier League the main priority at the moment, with maybe a quarter of the season to go, is to get those games finished and get their season resolved.

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“That is not really the case for us; we are only seven games into the league and we’ve got a lot of Cup action to get through. There’s so many moving parts and it is not a simple solution.

“I don’t blame the people who are making these decisions for taking everything into consideration, not just saying when can we get back?

“They are taking the approach of when are we able to come back and from that date on how can we most resemble a normal weekend of fixtures?”

Australia’s NRL returned behind closed doors at the weekend, with six stadiums hosting the eight games.

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Crowd effects were used to create an atmosphere for television viewers and McDermott said: “There’s all kind of things that can be done to make it that little bit more acceptable. The sterile nature of the games played behind closed doors before the shutdown made them hard to watch, but I watched nearly every minute of every game at the weekend, because you feel like there is some atmosphere.”

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