1. Anti-Vaxxers waiver stand-off
The major talking point this week was the stance of a small percentage of rugby league players refusing to agree to a flu jab as part of the National Rugby League’s COVID-19 protocols.
Peter V’landys said 97% of players have complied with being vaccinated.
Bryce Cartwright has been the face of the revolt and has come out this week and defended his decision not to get vaccinated.
— Bryce Cartwright (@BryceCartwright) May 6, 2020
By the end of the week he and fellow Titans players Brian Kelly and Nathan Peats were stood down despite a revised waiver late this week. This was a decision made by the Queensland Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young, not by the NRL.
Queensland’s approach to the flu vaccination has implications for the AFL with reports their players may not need to get jabbed before restarting.
The other three-percenters named as not being vaccinated include Raiders trio Sio Soliola, Joseph Tapine and Josh Papalii. Manly’s Dylan Walker, Martin Taupau and Addin Fonua-Blake were reported to have rejected the original waiver.
This is just another complication for the governing body to work through as the time ticks to reboot the competition on May 28.
