Wangaratta coach Luke Morgan believes it's important to keep players connected during the coronavirus pandemic for their mental well-being.
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The Magpies should have been playing North Albury this weekend but new restrictions mean players can't meet in groups larger than two.
"It's bizarre to be away from the group for so long," Morgan said.
"It's now a fortnight since we've had the group together and that would never happen at any point in the year, let alone leading into what should be round one.
"We're trying to keep our players connected, with the hope of this virus going away towards the middle part of this year and being able to play some footy.
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"It's important our players stay connected with one another, not only for their physical well-being but their mental well-being.
"That's something we're very cautious of as a football club.
"As footballers, we love our routine.
"We love to be able to turn up on a Tuesday and a Thursday, we do the extra sessions in the middle of the week and then we play footy on the weekend.
"To have that taken away is quite strange and some of the players could be feeling a little bit lost at the moment."
Wangaratta is using the Strava running app to keep tabs on the fitness of each player but it's the WhatsApp and Facebook groups Morgan believes will be most beneficial in this unprecedented age of isolation.
"One of our focuses is to keep them connected with each other," he said.
"Yes, we play at a fairly high level and performance and improvement are there and players want to get better but the interaction and the social aspect of sporting clubs is the main focus, especially in country towns.
"That's been completely taken away at the moment and we're dealing with it as best we can."