Another blow to Melbourne and Victoria as our beloved AFL Grand Final heads north to Queensland.
Victorian Footy fans look forward to this time of year, with the warmer spring weather, September footy finals, and the premiership decider being played at the home of football – the MCG.
A time of year when the hotels are full, cafes and restaurants are doing a roaring trade, and people are spilling out from bars on to the streets of Melbourne, creating that popular festive atmosphere that we all know and enjoy.
A far cry from life under the coronavirus Stage 4 lockdown restrictions that Melbournians have been enduring for the past 5 weeks due to the government’s failed hotel quarantine program.
A policy failure that’s adds another $50mil loss in business to the local economy, as the AFL Grand Final leaves Melbourne and heads north, to be played at the Gabba in Brisbane.
A bitter pill to swallow for the Victorian football fans and local business who are doing it extremely tough, most closed for business this month.
Melbourne is proudly known as the sporting capital of the world, with a major events calendar the envy of the country, is fast becoming a pariah city, with major events being forced out due to Labor’s second wave of coronavirus.
Had the Andrews Labor Government managed the hotel quarantine program responsibly, with support from the ADF as offered, the tradition of playing the AFL Grand Final on a Saturday afternoon at the MCG would have remained a part of our state’s sporting culture.
Comments attributed to Shadow Minister for Sport, Tourism and Major Events, David Hodgett:
“If it wasn’t for Daniel Andrews’ failed hotel quarantine program Victorian footy fans would be off to the MCG this month, sitting in the stands, enjoying a hot pie and barracking for their club.
“The popular AFL Grand Final Week in Melbourne, that usually injects around $50 million into the local economy, has been lost to Queensland due to Labor’s incompetence.”