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The NBL career of Tai Webster (left) could be over due to his stance against COVID-19 vaccination.Credit:Getty Images

But then came the shock announcement that both parties had mutually parted ways. The reason? Webster’s refusal to be vaccinated for COVID-19,which made him the first athlete in Australian sport to lose their job because of their stance against the jab. He will not be the last.

It was an amicable decision,which the National Basketball League team said was arrived at because it had become increasingly clear unvaccinated players won’t enjoy the same “activities and freedoms” as those who are,and that might stop them from being able to carry out their job.

“Tai was amazing for us last year and we wish him the absolute best. I fully support each player’s freedom of choice in regards to the vaccine,” said Breakers owner Matt Walsh said.

“The club will keep the door open for Tai,but unfortunately we are living in extraordinary times and,without being vaccinated,he will not have freedom of travel which would allow him to play for us this season.”

Due to trans-Tasman travel difficulties,the Breakers are expected to begin the new NBL season in Melbourne next month. The decision to dump Webster appears to have been made in response to the new Victorian road map out of lockdown,which was released on Sunday and the Breakers referred to in a statement.

But there is nothing in it,or NSW’s plan,that would have explicitly blocked Webster from playing in the NBL. Nor are any of the country’s top professional competitions likely to mandate that all players are to be vaccinated,but such are the noises they are hearing out of government about what the future will hold after this Delta outbreak that it may as well be compulsory.

The expectation is that,when states begin to open up,only vaccinated people will be able to fly on certain airlines,cross state borders,or go to particular stadiums. Some states may also impose harsher restrictions than others. That could mean unvaccinated players are unable to travel freely to play matches or even get onto the field,which the NBL explicitly foreshadowed earlier this month.

That alone may not be enough to put an athlete in breach of their contract,particularly if they can still attend training and carry out other off-field duties. But it would probably prompt a conversation between player and team about whether it is a relationship worth persisting with.

There are no vaccine mandates in the “big four” leagues in the US,or in many top European soccer competitions,but unvaccinated players are subject to more arduous protocols and regular testing regimes. They also generally travel on private planes. In Australia,not only is there a more conservative regulatory landscape,but footy players fly commercial,and some sporting bodies simply don’t have the financial capacity to put those sort of measures in place – especially after the last two years.

Cutting ties now at least gives the Breakers the chance to bring in a replacement player,and Webster can start searching for a new team. His brother,Corey,also played for the Breakers but was released last month. Three days later,he made the false claim on social media that the Pfizer vaccine kills nearly as many people as the virus. He now plays in Egypt.

At least one A-League club is bracing for a similar sort of showdown with a high-profile star who has not been afraid to voice strident anti-vaccination and anti-lockdown views through social media in recent weeks. There are other players at AFL and NRL clubs who are of a similar mind,but those competitions are happy to sit back and watch how the summer sports deal with it first. It won’t be boring.

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