https://www.townsvillebulletin.com.au/sport/local-sport/townsville-blackhawks-confident-they-will-get-through-this-chapter/news-story/d97312e12a3c47f35f7343394fb105ea TOWNSVILLE Blackhawks staff have been stood down due to the coronavirus pandemic. But with an eye on the future the club are steadfast they will be back. The suspension of all NRL and QRL competitions, as well as the closure of club affiliated leagues clubs, have led to the widespread standing down of team support staff across sporting codes. Blackhawks football operations manager Adrian Thomson was among those who will have annual leave paid out before the next steps are taken. But he was adamant he and other football staff would be at the ready to return as soon as they were able to do so. And he bore the brunt of the loss with something difficult to come by these days — positivity.
Thomson said the club’s board had looked after them in this time and would be in a strong position to reopen its doors once the situation resolves and football is back on the paddock. He said ultimately this was about preserving what they had for when this episode finally ends. “The club has shut down because they’re looking for the future, we need to be able to afford once things turn around to start up again,” Thomson said. “Everyone in every walk of life is struggling at the moment, from a footy side of things we’re complying with everything the government has handed down and we’re looking for the future. “We’ll get through this, get it going again and hopefully as many clubs can survive as possible.” While final decisions on player payment has not been made — likely to be influenced by the NRL’s stance on the matter — the likelihood is that it will not be possible to continue. But they would be ready for when rugby league returned. Thomson said the playing group had been given training programs to conduct as individuals so that when the Intrust Super Cup comes back they too can do so seamlessly. He said the club would continue keeping in touch with the playing group throughout this time — who were “chomping at the bit” to get back in the lime green. “The NRL will get back on its feet, at the end of the day I’m sure we’ve got a product that sells,” Thomson said. “It all flows from the NRL being successful and a good commodity and the money flows down to us. “We have got a good commodity to sell and I think people will want to come and see us, so at the end of the day the future is still bright. “It might be a bit of hardship, it might change the operational things we do – money is obviously going to be tighter than it has been – but whichever way we’ll get back to some sort of footy. It will survive and we build from there.” Head coach Aaron Payne also delivered a message to Blackhawks fans through social media, wishing “everyone the best through this tough time” and hoping the club would come through the other side “bigger and better”.
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May 2020
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