West Coast Fever are preparing to depart for Melbourne this Friday, April 30, for their Round 1 Suncorp Super Netball League clash with the Melbourne Vixens.
After an interrupted preparation due to a three-day COVID-19 lock-down in Perth, the Fever have received approval to travel to Victoria and will complete COVID-19 testing before departure and again on arrival in Melbourne on Friday.
They will be permitted to train in closed quarantine conditions in Melbourne ahead of the game, which is scheduled for 3pm on Saturday afternoon local time.
The team will then return to Perth on Sunday and begin preparations for their first home game of the season against NSW Swifts at RAC Arena at 6pm on Saturday, May 8.
West Coast Fever General Manager – Performance & Pathways Sue Gaudion said she was relieved that fixtures would proceed as scheduled after being put in doubt earlier this week.
“We had packed our bags and were about to check in at Perth Airport on Monday so that we could fly to Sydney and train there to avoid lock-down restrictions,” she said.
“Fortunately, we received a message from the State Government saying we could train at the Gold Netball Centre under new conditions, and we were able to change our plans at the last minute.
“It’s definitely been a challenging lead-up to Round 1 but we’ve shown our grit and got on with the job to minimise disruption for the playing group and prepare for a big game in Melbourne on Saturday.
“I’m really looking forward to getting the season under way and then returning to play at RAC Arena on May 8, hopefully in front of a full Green Army crowd, however we are awaiting further information from the State Government about whether there will be any capacity restrictions.”
Any updates will be provided to ticket holders for the Round 2 West Coast Fever home game at RAC Arena as soon as details are confirmed.
