Rugby league authorities must be ‘proactive’ not ‘reactive’ about coronavirus insists Leeds Rhinos chief Gary Hetherington

Rhinos took the decision late on Thursday not to travel to France for tomorrow's scheduled fixture at Catalans Dragons after one of their players showed symptoms of the illness.

The RFL wanted the game to go ahead and its board will decide if Rhinos are to face any “sanction” for not fulfilling the fixture. Hetherington has been managing the situation from Australia, where the NRL have announced matches will be played behind closed doors from next week.

He said Rhinos supported the decision earlier in the week – which was opposed by Catalans – to play the game without a crowd, but he stressed: “Things are moving so quickly. So much has changed since then, that has led us to making the decision we’ve made.

“That was primarily on the advice of our chief medical officer. We have spoken to Catalans and they are pleased with it. They have pointed out they simply can’t afford to have a fixture against Leeds Rhinos – or anyone else – that produces no income.”

Following earlier postponements not related to coronavirus, Rhinos now have two games in hand, with Catalans having three to fit in. Other fixtures are so far unaffected, but Hetherington urged: “We need Super League and the RFL to come together and get ahead of this situation if they can.

“It is very difficult dealing with something nobody has any experience of, but they need to start working with the clubs to come up with a range of contingencies.

“They need to be proactive, rather than reactive. Looking forward as a game we need to be aware of possible consequences and how the game could be affected and what measures we need to take to protect and preserve our game.

"It is time for the RFL and Super League and the clubs to come together under the leadership of Robert Elstone and Ralph Rimmer [Super League and RFL chief executives] to put in place plans to deal with any eventuality.”