Coronavirus: NRL committed to playing, FFA willing to make 'hard' decision over A-League

New South Wales and Victoria are among states in Australia planning to shut down non-essential services and travel over the next 48 hours amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Australian Football League (AFL) – a popular sport in Australia – postponed its season on Sunday, following just one round of action behind closed doors.

But the NRL, which has started playing without fans in round two, does not intend on following in the footsteps of the AFL.

The #NRL competition will proceed until there is advice from the government to shut down matches.https://t.co/LEXe63Iegq

— NRL (@NRL) March 22, 2020

Australian Rugby League Commission (ARLC) chairman Peter V'landys said, "it was the Commission's intention to proceed with the competition until there is advice from government to shut down matches".

While coronavirus disrupts sport around the world, the A-League has also continued playing, albeit behind closed doors.

The FFA released a statement, with the country's football governing body set to provide a further update on Monday.

"The health and wellbeing of the players continues to remain our top priority and we will not be afraid to make decisions to ensure this, no matter how hard they might be," said FFA CEO James Johnson.

.@FFA today announced that it continues to assess the ongoing operations of the @ALeague as the response from all levels of Government to the spread of COVID-19 evolves.https://t.co/6OaTvSzUph

— Football Federation Australia (@FFA) March 22, 2020

"We were very comfortable to take the initial decision to allow the Leagues to continue with additional measures in place and have worked through a number of scenarios to facilitate the completion of the A-League season. However, we remain under no illusions as to how fluid this situation is so we will remain agile and responsive to the challenges this pandemic brings.

"We are continuously assessing our position based on the latest directives and advice from the Government and Chief Medical Officer, and in consultation with our National COVID-19 Working Committee.

"We are taking every precaution in line with Government advice and working closely with the League and clubs which have implemented additional measures to ensure players remain healthy and in good physical and mental condition. Our priority is to ensure that this remains the case to give the clubs and players the best chance of achieving their sporting aspirations."

Globally, more than 13,000 people have died from at least 308,000 cases.