GROUP 10 might be on hold, but league president Linore Zamparini hopes it won't be for long.
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All senior and junior rugby league has been cancelled until at least May 1 following an announcement from the sport's governing body on Wednesday.
This means the Group 10 season has been pushed back by six weeks.
While a May 1 start date is something the competition could deal with, Zamparini says the it would face real struggles if it stretched past that point.
"If it's May 1 we'll survive but if it's longer than that we'll certainly be in a bit of trouble, he said.
"We can only follow the advice that's given from the health department and the government.
"They've obviously come up with a scenario that it's the safest thing to do under the circumstances."
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Many Group 10 clubs start their pre-seasons as early as December-January and the president's got the utmost sympathy for the teams who were putting in the hard yards over the Christmas break.
"A lot of these guys are nearly at peak fitness and now they've got to sit around for a month," Zamparini said.
"They [NSW rugby league] is recommending they don't train in groups so that makes it hard.
"I'm sure the coaches will hand out a leaflet to all of the players and tell them what they should be doing during the break."
Zamparini says now isn't the time to mope and that there's plenty to do behind the scenes to get things ready for the return of footy.
"We can't sit around now and feel sorry for ourselves," he said.
"There's things for clubs to do in the background.
"At the end of the day, the safety of everyone is paramount and if we can't bring them together to train and play then that's the way it's got to be.
"All the discussions regarding a restructuring of the competitions are fairly premature - as we've got no idea when footy will be back - but the Group 10 board won't waste any time forecasting potential solutions to ensure they're ready to commence the season when they get the all clear.
"We've got to sit down together and nut out some scenarios.
"These are unprecedented times in rugby league. The country can't live without it."
