National Rugby League club doctors "will cancel matches this weekend if they deem it unsafe for players" as temperatures are predicted to reach the mid-40s Celsius (110s Fahrenheit) for the opening round of junior representative competitions and NRL trials, according to Chammas & Buckley of the SYDNEY MORNING HERALD. The New South Wales Rugby League "moved to reduce the impact of the forecasted heatwave by moving some of its matches to start as early as" 7:45am, while Canterbury and Penrith's "twilight" NRL trial at Belmore has been delayed an hour to "avoid the hottest part of the day." It comes as the A-League announced Saturday's "twilight" match between Newcastle and Melbourne Victory at Hunter Stadium has been postponed to Monday night and New South Wales premier cricket discusses "contingency plans for grade and junior matches as a result of the predicted sizzling temperatures across the state." Club doctors will be given the "final say as to whether play will go ahead," and will cancel matches if they deem it "unsafe." There will also be a "drinks break" midway through each half, as well as an extended halftime break to "allow players time to recover." NRL guidelines take "into consideration the temperature, the age of the athletes, the regularity of fluid intake, the duration of the match and the time of day it is played" (SMH, 2/9).
