Tasmania JackJumpers Games Postponed Due To COVID 19 Cases
The Tasmania JackJumpers two games in Round 6 of the Hungry Jack’s NBL have been postponed.
The home game scheduled at MyState Bank Arena between Tasmania JackJumpers and Sydney Kings on January 8 as well as the away game between South East Melbourne Phoenix and Tasmania JackJumpers on January 10 have been postponed by the NBL due to COVID-19 protocols.
Tasmania JackJumpers have recorded 10 positive COVID-19 cases amongst the playing and coaching group, via both Rapid Antigen and PCR testing, and are unable to meet the minimum requirements for a team under NBL protocols.
“Unfortunately, a number of players and coaching staff have now contracted the virus and we’re unable to field the 8 players required for a game” Tasmania JackJumpers CEO Simon Brookhouse said.
“The players’ safety is absolutely paramount, and we will assist their recovery as best we can in order to continue a competitive inaugural season”.
All players and performance staff are now isolating and will undergo regular testing.
“We’re certainly not the only NBL team directly impacted by COVID cases and being adaptable to change is one of the challenges of elite sport especially in the current environment. I don’t suspect this short break and recovery time will disrupt the boys
too much” Brookhouse continued.
“Everything is new in our very first season and so we are quite agile in our on and off-court operations”.
“We’re disappointed for our fans and partners that we won’t be able to come together again on Saturday night, but we hope this is just a short pause to reset and come back together when it is safe to do so”.
At this stage the games will be rescheduled for a later date.
“We look forward to playing both Sydney Kings and South East Melbourne Phoenix in the near future. We’ll work with both Clubs, the League and our key stakeholders to find appropriate dates in the schedule” Brookhouse said.
Members and ticketholders for the Tasmania JackJumpers v Sydney Kings home game at MyState Bank Arena will be contacted directly regarding the refund and/or game reallocation process.
The JackJumpers Round 7 home game against New Zealand Breakers at MyState Bank Arena is unaffected at this stage.