South Coast Blaze COVID-19 Update

Whilst wanting to remain calm and measured, the South Coast Blaze is committed to the health, safety and welfare of its players and supporters and as such, wishes to provide the most appropriate response to COVID-19 as the situation unfolds.

At the moment, the Australian Government advises that there are currently no restrictions on participating in or attending events with under 500 people in NSW or Australia.

The South Coast Blaze will follow the most updated information and approach as provided by Netball NSW here: https://nsw.netball.com.au/news/netball-nsw-covid-19-update

As a general precautionary measure the South Coast Blaze’s policy in relation to COVID-19 is as follows:

General Policy

• People who have come from China, Iran, Italy or South Korea or had contact with a person with confirmed COVID-19 in the past 14 days are not permitted to attend South Coast Blaze events;
• People who have a fever, cough, sore throat or shortness of breath should refrain from attending South Coast Blaze events and should seek medical advice as per NSW Health Guidelines https://www.health.nsw.gov.au/Infectious/diseases/Pages/coronavirus.aspx.

Players/Coaching Staff

• Should a player or coaching staff develop flu like symptoms, please advise their Team Manager and quarantine themselves from training or South Coast Blaze events for 48 hours. NSW Health Guidelines should be followed in this regard https://www.health.nsw.gov.au/Infectious/diseases/Pages/coronavirus.aspx;
• The player or coaching staff should attend their General Practitioner and follow their advice as to whether a test for COVID-19 is required;
• The player or coaching staff is to advise their Team Manager of the outcome of the GP Visit and a Management Plan will be developed with the player or coaching staff on a case by case basis;
• Player confidentiality will be respected as far as is possible noting that the welfare of players and coaching staff and prevention of the spread of COVID-19 will be paramount;
• As with any infectious disease, personal hygiene is of the highest importance.  All staff and players are to remain vigilant with cleaning and hygiene and avoid shaking hands, kissing, sharing food and drinks and clothing. Additional hand sanitizers will be made available during training and events and the swapping of playing bibs and uniforms without washing garments first should be avoided;
• If players or coaching staff feel particularly vulnerable or concerned in relation to COVID-19, they are encouraged to speak to their Team Manager to work out an individualised approach for them.

South Coast Blaze will continue to monitor COVID-19 and update our advice as required.