Adelaide and Port Adelaide are planning for a second AFL hub – which could be in SA if borders remain closed after Gold Coast fixtures

Adelaide and Port Adelaide are planning for the possibility of going into a second ‘hub’ – most likely in Victoria after their Gold Coast trip – amid calls for the AFL to consider sending rival clubs to a base in South Australia as well. The State Government has flagged a travel bubble between Adelaide, Canberra and Hobart opening by July 3 but that won’t solve the Crows and Power’s travel dilemma unless 14-day quarantine rules are relaxed or they are given an exemption to fly-in and fly-out for games. The two teams will clash in the AFL’s Round 2 restart in Showdown 48 at Adelaide Oval on June 13 before flying to the Gold Coast – most likely the following Friday – for at least their next two games. But the expectation is they will be there for four games before learning of their next move. The AFL is still ironing out the finer details of the hubs including what players and their families can and can’t do and the AFL Players’ Association emailed its members on Monday saying the situation would be reviewed after Round 2. Port Adelaide midfielder Tom Rockliff told The Advertiser’s Lowdown Podcast he had not yet decided on whether his partner and son would go with him to the Gold Coast because he doesn’t know how long he will be away. “If we have to go to a hub and then not allowed back into South Australia because of isolation, we have the potential that we might have to fly to Melbourne and spend who knows how long there, so until we have clarity on that we won’t make a decision,” he said. Power chief executive Keith Thomas said that possibility was being discussed. “We are contemplating that scenario, whether it’s Melbourne or somewhere else, we’re contemplating the scenario that it might not be Adelaide,” Thomas said. “I think the prevailing sentiment at the moment is that by then we should be able to find a solution which means we don’t have to do that but it’s not resolved, and so yes, we are planning for it. “They (players) have been very understanding and resolute, I know it creates concern and difficulty and challenges, but I think our playing group is consistent with just about everyone else which is we want to play, we know the season is presenting these challenges and we’ll deal with them. “And what I have liked is the AFL are really going to the n’th degree to make sure the comfort of the players is most important. “The industry is recognising that the South Australian and Western Australian teams are being asked to do something quite extraordinary and there is an acknowledgment of that, and at some point that will be recognised in a way that is advantageous to us hopefully in the back end of this year and we’re doing it in that spirit.” Crows chief executive Andrew Fagan hopes his players can base themselves in Adelaide after their Gold Coast hub is over. “We’re preparing for a number of scenarios, the preferred model is we’re up there for 4-5 weeks and then we return home to be able to base ourselves here – whether games are played here or not – as opposed to remaining on the Gold Coast or relocating to another version of the hub in another city,” he said. “But equally one of the scenarios that also needs modelling is if things don’t change in terms of the border restrictions, then the ability for Adelaide and Perth to be hubs themselves and have teams come here to share the load. “Everything is still on the table, it’s why the AFL is only fixturing four games initially and two at a time in the short term to provide them with as much flexibility for games to occur. “We expect an announcement after Round 3 for another two games and most likely to see us remaining on the Gold Coast, however, we’re hoping that between now and then we receive further detail either in response to changing border restrictions or travel and quarantine restrictions, or the changing nature in how hubs will be structured around the country. “Everything is remaining on the table and the AFL are open minded and agile, and there is an appreciation from the AFL that there are four clubs up there taking a fair load in the initial stages and that needs to be balanced out at some point.” Crows midfielder Brodie Smith said teammates with young families were front of mind for the leadership group at West Lakes. “Our main concern is around family, we have guys with newborns so as a leadership group we’ve put a lot of time into those guys and making sure they’re clear on what it looks like for them,” Smith told The Lowdown. “I know we’re pushing to try to get bigger rooms for those guys with kitchens so they can take their families and look after their kids. “There are other things like ‘is the hub our home or our room?’ ‘can all the boys go to someone’s room and watch the footy?’ so there’s a fair bit to work through.”