The Project panellist Steve Price has berated the NSW Government for deciding to go ahead with the third Test at the SCG with fans in attendance as “madness”.
On Monday – the same day zero COVID cases were recorded in Sydney – it was revealed the SCG will be reduced to 25 per cent crowd capacity for this week’s cricket Test.
Acting NSW acting Premier John Barilaro urged regional NSW residents to reconsider going to the match.
The third test against India plans to allow for 10,000 fans each day, instead of what was first to be around 20,000.
Medical experts have called upon the state government and NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian to rethink the crowd numbers and protocols ahead of the Sydney Test.
Venues NSW CEO Kerrie Mather appeared on The Project on Monday night, saying: “We’ve hosted more than 20 events during the COVID period and welcomed more than 150,000 people through our gates without a single incident of transmission.”
However Price fired back, labelling the decision to allow fan attendance at the Third Test as “madness”.
“Well, good luck with that. You’re going to let people go to the cricket,” he said.
“I think they should have no one at the Test Match. Play the Test for the broadcasters, but that’s madness having a crowd in there.”
Acting Premier Barilaro joined The Project later on, saying he was “confident” the Test could go ahead.
“Look, we said from the outset that we would be working through our health officials with the SCG and Cricket Australia and to find the final outcome and we’ve had some spikes in an area of Sydney that bothers us and that worries us,” he added.
“We have decided to work with the SCG Trust and we will work to see if there is any movement after that.”
