Brad Lawlor said his phone was ringing off the hook on Thursday following the Nova Scotia government’s announcement of an increase in gathering limits.
Lawlor is Soccer Nova Scotia’s executive director and leading in the effort to bring the sport back for the organization’s 21,000-strong membership.
So Thursday’s announcement by Premier Stephen McNeil and Dr. Robert Strang, chief medical officer of health for Nova Scotia, that will allow groups of up to 50 people to gather while social distancing and groups of 10 will be allowed to gather without social distancing, was welcomed by the long-time administrator. Nova Scotia has gone 10 days without a positive COVID-19 test.
“Yesterday was a chaotic day with everyone calling and asking ‘what are we going to do now,’ but we’re happy to get there, it’s a great thing,” said Lawlor. “It wasn’t expected to be that high a number and now we have to adjust accordingly.”
Sport Nova Scotia leaders are changing plans on the fly to meet the new numbers said Jamie Ferguson, the organization’s chief executive officer.
“It’s a big step forward, but everyone is searching for details,” Jamie Ferguson. “Overall everyone is pleased we’ve made some progress and good on everybody in this province for taking care and doing things right to make sure we give everybody a chance to take part.”
Brandon Guenette, executive director for Baseball Nova Scotia, said the increase in gathering numbers is a boost for member associations.
“The increase of public gathering sizes from 10 to 50 will certainly ease the strain on associations running programs,” said Guenette. “It brings us closer to being able to offer some level of competition, but not guaranteed yet. We are currently in the process of having our return to competition plan reviewed, and will have an update for membership before the end of next week.”
As the province’s competitive swimmers wait for indoor facilities to reopen, there will be the opportunity to train outdoors.
“Swimmers and coaches are excited to be able to resume open water training next week after months out of the water,” said Bette El-Hawary, the executive director of Swim Nova Scotia. “We are fortunate in our province to have a number of waterfronts easily accessible to many of our clubs.
“However it is a very different training environment for swimmers. Not all swimmers can participate in open water training programs that our clubs will be running; swimmers must be 11 and older and have experience with open water swimming to be able to participate. We are looking forward to having our pools open and welcome our clubs back as soon as possible.”
Heather Myrer, executive director of the Nova Scotia Equestrian Federation, said the organization can now pivot to competition planning.
“This week’s announcement was welcoming news for the equestrian community,” said Myrer. “We have been very fortunate to have had early reopening of our participatory activities and now we can focus on returning to the competition ring. That was something we really weren’t expecting this early in the summer. We had hoped for a return to competition by mid to late August. Although we have had to make some tough decisions around championships and qualification standards, our competitions will bring our athletes back together after three long months of uncertainty. Even with that, it is vital that we move forward in a cautious and meaningful way."
Provincial competition isn’t a reality for the soccer community this summer but Lawlor and his staff are working in lockstep with their member clubs to get back to the pitch as soon as possible.
“We have a very good situation going on,” said Lawlor. “We have every one of our clubs doing a risk (mitigation) assessment.
After the assessment, it scores them from very low risk to high-risk return to soccer. Staff members meet with the clubs to help mitigate the risk (of COVID spread) and help in the areas where they have to make changes. Clubs aren’t allowed to proceed until they are in the low-risk category.”
Lawlor said his organization’s approach has been methodical for a reason. He said there are many partners in the guidelines and reviewing of the return to the pitch plan, including Soccer Canada, Sport Nova Scotia and the Dept. of Communities, Culture and Heritage.
“We are dealing with a ton of volunteers and paid staff, said Lawlor. “They have been working together along the way, understanding that safety is the priority. I realize sometimes it’s frustrating, but the latest news is a huge positive for us.
“In regards to games, we don’t have formal competition so we don’t have what we used to have with leagues, but I’m sure this will open up 4 vs. 4, possibly 5 vs. 5 within the clubs,” said Lawlor. “It will have more of a community-based feel to it, which is a good thing as well.
“Those minor adjustments we make to not offer leagues doesn’t mean the game won’t survive. It means that we are going to adapt and the game is going to look a little different this year.”
Soccer Nova Scotia is also taking the precaution of outfitting its clubs with the personal protection equipment staples of masks, hand sanitizer and gloves.
With the positive news of increased gatherings, Ferguson is hopeful that all involved will remain mindful of the protocols put in place by the province to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
“It can change in a day or two days if we don’t stay vigilant,” said Ferguson. “The Nova Scotia Sport guidelines are there and they need to be followed. And everyone will continue I’m sure to follow them and that is the key.”