THE Riverland Football League commission is confident of seeing some on-field action in 2020, according to the league’s chairman.
This comes as the RFL awaits direction from the SANFL in terms of a possible start date for football in 2020.
All football-related activities are currently postponed in South Australia until May 31, with the RFL season originally scheduled to begin on Anzac Day.
Mr Uren said he believes the chances of seeing football in the Riverland in 2020 are continuing to grow.
“As we hear more on the health side of things I am getting more and more confident,” he said.
“We have got a long way to go to get out of this pandemic, but especially in South Australia the public has been fantastic in stemming the flow and having minimal cases in the state.”
Speaking to the Murray Pioneer last Friday, Mr Uren believes the RFL’s later scheduled start date compared to other competitions in South Australia will help in the long run.
“A lot of people are saying that they are missing footy and that sort of thing, but we have only missed one round,” he said.
“In our original draw we had three byes.
“One for interleague and another for country champs and now those events have both been cancelled.
“Then we have got the Queen’s Birthday long weekend, which we probably won’t be playing by then anyway.
“So, in our current draw there is three weekends that we can catch up.
“So, if we take three weeks off and if we can play each other at least twice to get a legitimate sort of season under way, we still have seven weeks up our sleeve and could still finish on the same grand final date at this point.
“We have got some time up our sleeve to still get some really good football happening in 2020.”
Mr Uren said the RFL commission is currently working with clubs to establish just how late the 2020 season could possibly run.
“What we are doing is everyone is focussed on when we are starting, but we are going from the other end,” he said.
“We are focussed on when is going to be our absolute end date and we are getting information from the clubs about that, so that when we do know when we can start, we can say ‘okay that’s our absolute end date and this is what we can fit in’.
“We have got scenarios in place so it’s not a mad scramble to put things in place. That is the angle we are coming from.
“We are doing everything we can and we are really looking forward to getting footy going in 2020.”
According to Mr Uren, a number of possible scenarios are being discussed as the RFL awaits the green light from the SANFL.
“A couple of clubs have said they will play until whenever, but that is probably a little bit hard on players and volunteers and that sort of thing,” he said.
“I’m still waiting to hear back from a few clubs as well.
“The general consensus is that if we can be done by the end of September or early October, by the October long weekend at the latest, then people are happy with that.
“I will chat with some summer sports people as well to see what their thoughts are. We won’t be disturbing any summer sport programs and we will be done not too far past our official end date of September 12.
“We just want to work with the clubs as much as possible and to get as many games of football in so that we can put together what we deem to be a legitimate football season.
“A decision on the finishing date will be made when we know what the start date will be.”
Mr Uren pinpointed one key issue that he believes will be crucial in grassroots footy being able to resume.
“The AFL is meeting with Federal and State Governments and there is a lot on their agenda as far as public gatherings and state borders,” he said.
“The crowd gatherings is the main one that affects us.
“We can’t really get a season going until it is financially viable for the football clubs to operate and that means we need to get people through the gates and they need to be able to sell stuff at the canteen and over their bars.
“Until that can happen we won’t be able to play, but we may know more next week, or definitely by May 10 or 11, the SANFL should be getting back to us by then.
“If not a clear-cut definite start date, we would hope to at least get a narrowed guidelines.”
Mr Uren said RFL clubs will have a brief window for a mini-preseason, but the priority will be getting matches started.
“I urge all clubs to encourage their players to have some sort of fitness base,” he said.
“There will be a bit of notice for teams to get together and train together for a little bit before the season starts, but it won’t be a massive pre-season, so they need to have some sort of fitness.
“Because as soon as we are allowed to go, we are going to be dropping the hammer and getting the footy season under way.
“Two to three weeks would be ideal, but it won’t be any less than two weeks, then you get four or six trainings together and they can reacquaint themselves with each other.
“Anything less than that wouldn’t be fair on the players or coaches, because we need to make sure we are still putting out a good standard of Riverland footy.”