Cronulla Sharks' 'No. 1 fan' Scott Morrison promises he WILL be at the team's first footy game this weekend - despite sports leagues around the world shutting down due to the coronavirus outbreak
- Scott Morrison promised footy fans he will attend the Sharks game this Saturday
- Kick-off for round one of the NRL season is set to begin, despite health concerns
- The NBA has suspended its season, as have some European soccer leagues
- The Opposition leader has called for mass events to be cancelled to stop spread
- Coronavirus symptoms: what are they and should you see a doctor?
Scott Morrison has promised footy fans he will be among the screaming fans cheering on the Cronulla Sharks this weekend, despite the coronavirus crisis.
The NRL season began on Thursday night, and the prime minister's favourite team will begin their 2020 campaign against the South Sydney Rabbitohs - supported by opposition leader Anthony Albanese - at the ANZ Stadium in Sydney on Saturday.
Both Mr Morrison and Mr Albanese said they will be in attendance at the game, the Australian reported.
Games are going ahead despite mounting calls for mass events to be cancelled in a bid to prevent the spread of the deadly disease.
On Thursday, the NBA in the United States suspending the entire season after a player tested positive for the virus. Some European soccer leagues have also cancelled matches or are holding them behind closed doors.
Australia currently has 158 confirmed coronavirus cases and three people have died from the illness.
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Scott Morrison has been met by cheering crowds at a home-turf rugby league match less than a day after he led his party to victory in the federal election
Scott Morrison poses with other fans during the round 13 NRL match between the Cronulla Sharks and the Parramatta Eels last year
Mr Morrison attended a number of games last year wearing his trademark supporters scarf and with a beer in hand.
He excitedly sang the iconic 'Up, Up, Cronulla' team song along with players, coaches and training staff when the team beat the Cowboys 16-14.
NRL players have been issued stringent rules ahead of the season, limiting their interaction with fans due to the virus.
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They have been told to acknowledge fans by waving or giving a thumbs up.
Labor MP Bill Shorten called for mass gatherings to be cancelled and stricter measures in place to combat the outbreak.
'The only way to make sure this pandemic is not worse than it otherwise could be is to have more drastic social distancing measures,' he told Sky News.
The Prime Minister of Australia Scott Morrison drinks a beer during the round 10 NRL match between the Cronulla Sharks and the Manly Sea Eagles in May last year
'Singapore and Japan and parts of China, they are putting in more draconian reactions. As a result it would appear that some of their pandemic numbers are not going to be as bad as other countries who are doing too little too late.'
Grattan Institute chief executive John Daley has also called for Mr Morrison to introduce radical social distancing measures to curb the spread of COVID-19.
'One option is that we can introduce very significant social distancing now and also potentially close the airports to foreign travellers. The consequence of that would be you would probably see the number of cases in Australia drop to zero,' he told The Australian.
'The second option is that you keep doing what we are doing at the moment. At some point it is likely that we will start to see significantly more person-to-person transmission in Australia.'
Thus far, Australians have been advised to avoid shaking hands and limit kissing.
The announcement came as President Donald Trump banned all travel from Europe to the US for 30 days starting from Friday.
Mr Morrison has asked health officials to look at whether flights between Australia and Europe should also be stopped.
No time frame was given for when a decision would be made.
Meanwhile, the federal government extended bans for China, Italy, South Korea and Iran.
The bans mean any foreigner has to spend 14 days outside those countries before entering Australia.
Donning a pale blue Sharks scarf, Morrison was captured excitedly pounding his fist on an esky while the Cronulla side sang their traditional song after a match last year
