JUNEE Diesels president Simon Vanzanten says the difficult period their sponsors are experiencing could prompt the club to consider sitting out a potential Group Nine competition this year to be ready for 2021.
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He also believes the forced football shutdown due to coronavirus could be the push Group Nine needs to address "ridiculous" payments to players.
After a crippling player shortage last year the Diesels' depth was the strongest it's been in a decade before the pandemic forced officials to postpone the season until at least May 1.
Vanzanten said players may have to consider not being paid this year to get a season off the ground, if the current situation subsides in time for it to be played at all.
"Our two major sponsors are shut, it makes it tough for footy clubs that if it does come back, how does it come back this year?", Vanzanten said.
"That's the option as a club we have to look at, whether we actually put a team in the competition or just don't play for a year due to the sponsorship (situation).
"We'd have to have a discussion with our players anyway and whether they'd be paid a lot less money and play for the love of the game.
"If it is too hard we could take the option of sitting out this season and come back in a better landscape in 2021, rather than going out there and getting into financial debt and not having a club."
Vanzanten believes the competition's long term viability would benefit if clubs agree set player payments across the board, at a more modest level than they currently are.
"It could be a great thing for rugby league to realise you're not playing for the money anymore," he said.
"Things don't get fixed until they get blown up, do they? The money side of things has been ridiculous to be honest in Group Nine for the quality of players you get.
"The money is way over the top and this could be a way of bringing it back to reality and making it sustainable for a period of time.
"I'd rather have a group approach where you play for minimal local payments across the board and everyone agrees on that so there's no transferring of players across the board.
"We've gone through some ups and downs big time in Junee. We seem to bounce back pretty quick and this year was probably the biggest commitment I've seen for some locals."
Vanzanten said the main priority for Group Nine clubs to is rally around their players and members and ensure they're coping mentally with the situation.
"From a club point of view we're making sure our club gets through this hard time, having sponsors and being financially viable," he said.
"But the other thing is we're constantly in touch with our group and members through messenger with mental health advice.
"We put some things up on our website from the NSWRL about how to get through hard times, but we're also touching base with each other and seeing how everyone's going.
"At the moment times are hard and with Group 20 at the moment it's pretty bad with the amount of people committing suicide due to mental health.
"It's very worrying and it's something we have to talk about and discuss.
"You don't think of the social aspect until it's not happening. It's probably 70 or 80 per cent of what football's all about."
