DAVID WEINER

SWINE flu has forced the cancellation of a NSW Maccabi Junior Soccer Club tour to Melbourne on the Queen’s Birthday long weekend. Approximately 100 Sydney-based Maccabi junior players were due to play North Caulfield Maccabi’s junior soccer sides in the annual Chef Innox State of Origin carnival. The decision to cancel the tour came after the NSW Department of Health upgraded their swine flu containment measures on Wednesday afternoon, requiring children who have travelled to greater metropolitan Melbourne to stay away from school for seven days after their return to NSW.

After consultation with the Department of Health and event organisers, Maccabi Junior Soccer Club president Danny Hochberg made the urgent decision to cancel the tournament just two days out from the event. “We had a duty of care to the kids, we felt it was appropriate to take a conservative point of view,” he told The AJN. “It’s never an easy decision to pull out after all the hard work we have done … but the safety and security of the kids … and the liability made the decision easier.”

The decision will cost both clubs financially, but Hochberg said that Mark Davis and Sam Gansu in Victoria “were resigned to the reality … and understand the position we find ourselves in. They were good in accepting the decision we have made”.  Hochberg described the cancellation of the much anticipated event as a “blow … everyone was ready to go”, but hopes the tournament will return again next year, be it in Melbourne or Sydney. The club is awaiting word from their insurance company and Virgin Blue about refunds.