The roar of a sporting crowd has become a beacon of COVID management.
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The UK and the US endured extraordinary suffering as the pandemic took hold but now, watching delirious and vaccinated crowds cheer England into a Euro final and the Phoenix Suns to a 2-0 NBA finals series lead over Milwaukee, it all seems like a far-off fantasy from lockdown in Shellharbour.
Sure the AFL and NRL have had some packed stadiums along the way, but the state-hopping high-wire act of avoiding COVID outbreaks and lockdowns can only be maintained for so long.
Sport is reflective of what society is capable of handling, just look at the Olympics. Bringing the world's best athletes together, as well as international travellers, has all the makings of a diabolical super-spreader event.
So this week Japan announced a 'state of emergency' and banned crowds from coming.
It would have been one of numerous contingencies the Olympic governing bodies had prepared for, but means the likes of Emma McKeon, Caitlin Foord and Blake Govers will be chasing gold without a heightened environment around them.
For whatever political and logistical mismanagement along the way, vaccines work and we in Australia simply do not have enough of them quickly enough.
Now we're paying for it, as the COVID horror movie sequel - Lockdown 2: The Spreadening - is continuing for at least a third week.
Which brings me to the St George Illawarra party at Paul Vaughan's place.
The new restrictions imposed by the NSW government on Friday, in a bid to halt the spread of the super-dangerous Delta variant, shows how disgracefully stupid the Dragons' actions were.
While it's easier for Shellharbour than Wollongong - simply because it's further away from Sydney and fewer commute to work in the city - the Illawarra should be aiming to break out of lockdown as soon as possible.
You can only do that by following the rules and doing everything possible to ensure COVID numbers flatline.
There's already a reasonable argument Shellharbour should instead be on Kiama-level restrictions, of mask-wearing indoors and social distancing.
Not only did Dragons players break the law and NRL biosecurity measures, they let down an entire community.
NRL players have a few go-to moves in their media-relations playbook.
One of them is to dismiss external criticism, such as this column, and say the only opinions they respect are those within the four walls of their dressing room.
And yet you blokes deliberately ignored the advice of coach Anthony Griffin and football manager Ben Haran; taking the piss by getting on it anyway.
So not only have you betrayed the community and your fans, but the coach and teammates who weren't present at the lockdown shindig.
One of the contributing factors to Paul McGregor's demise as coach was how he managed the varying opinions within the Dragons camp about Jack de Belin's role in the squad during the rape trial, which lingered for two years.
Griffin was meant to be the hard-nosed type to fix any cultural issues, now he'll face dealing with a playing group that either doesn't get it, or doesn't care enough.
In fairness to the club, chief executive Ryan Webb and Griffin did get on the front foot and address the issue, while sacking Vaughan, as the NRL came down hard with penalties.
However, de Belin and Corey Norman, who is already on the way out anyway, should be wearing skates for the rest of the season; the ice must be that thin.
Crisis turns to opportunity for Griffin - 'Crisatunity' - the term Homer Simpson once coined.
Griffin has a clear mandate for change, but now needs to make some impact in the player market rather than patching up the roster with seasoned ex-Broncos.
The Suns have never won an NBA title; England haven't won a major title since the 1966 World Cup.
The Dragons will be facing a similar drought to the 32-year wait endured before 2010 if they cannot change their culture.
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