The sudden outbreak of the coronavirus epidemic has set back a Tasmanian AFL bid by "at least 10 years", according to leading AFL figures.
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Eddie McGuire and Nick Riewoldt discussed the issue amid coverage of Thursday night's AFL season opener in front of an empty MCG.
McGuire hinted Tasmania was close to being ticked off by AFL club presidents on having enough money left in the game's coffers to set up and support a 19th team.
But the Collingwood president feels the virus that has drastically affected fixturing has all but wiped out the bid.
"What's heartbreaking is on last Tuesday of last week, we had the presidents' meeting and it was a really good discussion," McGuire said.
"We put it on the agenda and debated, and really got stuck into it and there was a real feel that the time is there.
"And you know what? We all sort of said you know we have nearly got enough dough to have a go at this.
"Gone. Gone. It's all gone."
The AFL is now set to repay a line of credit of more than $500 million from the virus.
McGuire said the AFL has to "save the furniture" before measuring when Tasmanian team could be a possibility.
"I think at least 10 years," he said of the question. "Not just for Tassie, but it's set the game back 10 years."
Premier Peter Gutwein was asked on Friday to respond to McGuire's comments.
It came just a day after the Tasmanian government had locked down the borders to visitors that seriously threatens to block Launceston and Hobart out of hosting their four scheduled AFL matches each in the state.
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The response to McGuire was not unexpectedly terse.
"I don't pay much attention to Eddie McGuire to be frank," Gutwein said.
Tasmanian AFL taskforce chairman Brett Godfrey was far more diplomatic towards McGuire's inside information, but felt the state was still on track to join the AFL within the proposed five years.
"[The] very buoyant summation from the president's meeting in normal times should be seen very positively by Tasmania and its supporters," Godfrey said.
"Of course, now, we are in anything but normal times.
"I think though it is fair to say that we are talking about a 2025 scenario and the AFL rightly have a more pressing immediate issue to consider.
"The Taskforce certainly understands the priorities and will be both patient and continue to push Tasmania's case when appropriate."
Riewoldt also served on the taskforce to investigate the financial costs of a team.
The retired St Kilda five-time best and fairest winner agreed with McGuire about the impact of COVID-19, but it wasn't all doom and gloom.
"A month ago when the question was asked, you could genuinely say with the work of the 260-page document that been done, all the feasibility that been done, we could say we were as close to a team in Tasmania as we have ever been in the history of the game," he said.
"The ramifications of this is going to be far-ranging and wide-reaching for all of the incumbent football clubs.
"But Tasmania also has an opportunity to also contribute to the game, to drive revenue, to help that march back towards where we once were only a month ago."
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