Storm giant Nelson Asofa-Solomona has been ruled ouf of the Māori All Stars game next week.
The NRL’s All Stars fixture in Townsville next week has been thrown into chaos by the Covid-19 outbreak in Melbourne, with six Māori Storm stars - Nelson Asofa-Solomona, Jesse and Kenny Bromwich, Brandon Smith, Jahrome Hughes and Reimis Smith – officially ruled out due to border closures. The Storm s Indigenous pin-up Josh Addo-Carr will also miss the fixture. Less than an hour after Victoria Premier Daniel Andrews announced on Friday the latest lockdown would come into effect at midnight (2am Saturday, NZ time), Queensland pulled down the shutters to residents in the Greater Melbourne region. South Australia had previously closed their border.
Five million Melbourne residents are bracing for lockdown once again as a Covid-19 cluster grows to 13, with five new cases reported on Friday.
Victorian ministers held a cabinet meeting at 11.45am to discuss a five-day lockdown that could involve confining residents to their homes except for essential reasons and closing schools and businesses.
The restrictions are expected to come into play on Friday evening after Premier Daniel Andrews gives a press conference at 1pm.
A city-wide lockdown could see fans banned from the Australian Open with Serena Williams, Novak Djokovic and Aussie superstar Nick Kyrgios due to play on Friday.