The NSW Swifts are tonight relocating to Brisbane as Suncorp Super Netball looks at ways to keep the 2021 season going amid the on-going COVID-19 situation which is currently enveloping many of Australia's major cities.
However, the team will travel without head coach Briony Akle and the team physio who have been forced into isolation after being identified as close contacts of patrons who attended a Tier 1 exposure site in Melbourne last week.
Super Netball has yet to make a decision regarding this weekend's fixture so it is unclear whether or not they will miss any of Swifts' upcoming games.
The six-time Premiers currently sit second on the competition ladder, just behind local rivals the Giants on goal percentage.
The Swifts have three regular-season games remaining against the Sunshine Coast Lightning, Collingwood Magpies and Adelaide Thunderbirds as they look to secure a top-two finish.
In Akle's absence assistant coach Bec Bulley - a Premiership champion with the Swifts in 2008 and a World Cup winner - will oversee the team's preparations.
Nikki Horton, Executive General Manager of the Swifts, said the immediate thoughts of the club were with Akle, the team physio and their families.
"Briony and our support team have already given so much to the Swifts' campaign so far this year and we really feel for them at this time," she said.
"Both Briony and our physio have young kids with them, who will obviously remain with their mums in Adelaide, and we are working through how we can best support them all.
"This is a very unfortunate situation but it is our hope to get them back with the main group early next week, and Briony will still be in regular contact with the team once they settle in Queensland.
"We are fortunate to have such a brilliant assistant in Bec Bulley who is a champion of the game and a really inspiring individual for our players to look to in Briony's absence.
"I would also like to make a special mention of our playing group who are relocating for the fifth time since being asked to leave Sydney last month.
"Despite all of the upheaval they are on the cusp of qualifying for another Finals Series and I know they'll be really driven to win for Briony and everyone affected in the next round.”
The Swifts will release more information regarding future fixtures as soon as it becomes available.
