As lower league rugby is only sustainable due to people paying at the gate, it's hard to see how leagues below Super League can return before 'gatherings' are permitted, and that ain't going to be anytime soon.
The pathway out of this crisis may become a little clearer over the next few weeks as we start to see how much the virus rears its head again across Europe as lockdown measures are relaxed. If it stays quiet, there's hope. If it takes off, we could be back to square one.
With footballers testing positive in Germany, meaning the whole team has got to self isolate, it shows how difficult it is for team sports to cope with this situation. Had they played a match before testing positive, I assume anyone they'd played against would also have to then go into isolation. It could all become very 'stop, start' even with government approval to play. Two weeks of quarantine, and then a week back training before their next match, could make for a very long season!
I'm trying to stay positive throughout all of this but I'm also trying to be realistic too. If we can watch the Dons again in 2020, I'll be pleasantly surprised but I've more-or-less written off this year. My immediate hope is that all clubs can survive this.
Take care and stay safe.
