NRL CEO Todd Greenberg and ARL Commission chairman Peter V'landys have addressed the media in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic to announce the 2020 Telstra Premiership will continue.
V'landys said: "It's one of the toughest challenges for us to stay viable in the history of the game. "This can change by the hour. All decisions we will make will have the safety and health of our players as paramount.
"We are going to review all options including isolating players or suspending the season. We've commissioned a pandemic expert and we are going to act on their advice.
"The paramount consideration is the players' safety."
Round two will be played behind closed doors and then the NRL will reassess the situation with V'landys conceding the decision could be taken out of their hands if the federal government increases its sanctions.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Friday announced a ban on non-essential public gatherings of 500 people or more, starting on Monday.
The opening round has been played without restrictions, concluding with Sunday's clashes between Manly and Melbourne at Lottoland and the St George Illawarra v Wests Tigers fixture at WIN Stadium.
"At this stage we will continue to round two and give us the chance to work with our biosecurity and pandemic staff. It could have catastrophic results on us," he added.
"We want to have the best available, that's why we've done this. If someone goes down we need to reassess. There's never been more financial pressure on this game than ever. We have funds but those funds will run out quickly.
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Topic: NRL announces competition to continue despite increased travel restrictions
