Sydney Swans coach John Longmire says his club is certainly open to the possibility of the quarantine hub setup being floated by the AFL.
Reports indicate that the league is seriously looking into playing games in one or two quarantined locations in a bid to breathe life into the 2020 season which has been postponed until at least May 31 because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Longmire admits the idea is only in its infancy but says it is a notion that his club would look at openly, just as clubs in the NRL are doing.
“Last week there were some discussions that had taken place in regards to what it might look like when we get back,” he said on SEN Breakfast.
“Then there were some opinions from all the various footy clubs. So that’s been thrown into the mix.
“There’s a fair way to go though. You can understand the AFL being focused on other things over the last couple of weeks. I’m sure the attention will start to turn and what it might look like from there.”
Longmire added: “I know the NRL are talking about something similar up here about going into hubs and being open to having multiple games over short periods of time.
“We’re open to anything really. We want to get the game going again.”
SEN Breakfast’s Tim Watson posed a question relating to the specifics of this concept and how it would impact the players in particular.
“If you were a player and this was put to you today,” Watson asked co-host Garry Lyon.
“You’re a young player, you’ve got three young children, a wife, you’re in isolation at the moment and your football club rings you and says, ‘This is how we think we are going to be able to re-start the season’.
“‘We don’t know how long you’ll be there for. It could be six to eight weeks, it might be three months, what do you think about that as a young father?’”
Lyon replied: “I think you’d have to look at it in these extraordinary times.
“People working in the mining industry go away and leave their families for three, four or five weeks at a time. Fly-in fly-outs, those sorts of people.
“In these extraordinary times, I think we have a look at it, don’t we?”
Watson feels it is something that may not be welcomed by the playing group as a whole.
“Already what’s taking place has disrupted so many people’s lives,” he said.
“For something like that to take place too, I think there’ll be push-back from the players.
“The AFL might say this is a way of you getting your full whack and your full wage again, whatever it might be.
“I would think there’s a hell of a lot of negotiation to take place before this gets the tick of approval.”
Listen to Longmire on SEN Breakfast below: