O and M clubs try to qualify key players for upcoming finals

Wangaratta's Ben Speight and Wangaratta Rovers' Dylan Stone are among those racing to qualify.

Under the O and M by-law, Rule 6. f) i) "A player must play in at least three home and away matches for their clubs to be eligible to participate in a final series match."

Meanwhile, Rule 6. f) ix) states: "Any player who is on an AFL or VFL club list must play at least half of the scheduled home and away matches to be eligible to play in final series matches or be delisted by their AFL or VFL club."

COVID has wiped out the past three rounds of the O and M season, meaning it will be a 15-round season.

Given it's an odd number, the qualification criteria is eight games.

Stone, for example, has played six games for Rovers and four for the Northern Bullants in the VFL.

He would need to play two more games for Rovers, but if he doesn't achieve that and the Hawks still want him to play in the finals, the Bullants would have to delist him.

If they did delist him, he would have already met the criteria of three games.

When the O and M announced on Wednesday it would return to play on August 7, following that COVID-enforced break, one of the stipulations was that finals qualification was centred on the above by-laws.

"With 15 games that reflects as eight matches, so we have lost one pro rata (proportional), so yes the number has changed, but our by-laws don't specify a specific number, it just refers to half the games played," O and M general manager Craig Millar offered.

When the O and M resumes next weekend, there will be four games based in Victoria and one in NSW.

If the current Victoria Government protocols remain in place until then, as flagged by Premier Daniel Andrews when the State's lockdown was lifted at 11.59pm last Tuesday night, it means there will be no crowds at the Victorian games and no Melbourne players will be able to enter NSW as the State is rated an 'extreme risk zone' by Victoria.

The league will dodge a bullet in that the only NSW game, Lavington-North Albury, won't include Melbourne-based players.

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And in other news, the league's investigation into alleged racial abuse of Albury's Jeff Garlett by a spectator against Wodonga on July 3 is ongoing.

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