Melbourne Storm to relocate after Victoria’s recent spike in coronavirus cases

Melbourne will relocate for an indefinite period after Victoria’s recent spike in coronavirus cases caused the NRL to switch Friday’s match against New Zealand Warriors to Sydney.

Storm’s clash against the Warriors had been scheduled to be played at Melbourne’s usual home ground of AAMI Park, but it will now be played at Netstrata Jubilee Stadium. Melbourne players and staff will fly out of Melbourne on Wednesday.

The decision to move the round seven fixture came after Victoria recorded 16 new cases overnight, making for 125 active cases.

Melbourne prop Christian Welch said: “We’ve braced for the potential that we might need to relocate and potentially play some of our home games in Queensland or NSW.

“It’s still developing at the moment, we’re just waiting to see what happens.”

Storm players and staff will undergo coronavirus testing to make sure there is no added risk of infection prior to Friday’s match.