POLICE will patrol transport hubs and motorists will be asked for identification "the moment you drive into" McDonald Jones Stadium's car park for State of Origin, Newcastle's top cop has said.
With some discontent in the community about the historic match going ahead given the Sydney COVID-19 situation, Newcastle City Police commander Wayne Humphrey spoke to the media on Friday about how the event would be patrolled.
Detective Superintendent Humphrey said he was yet to be told of the exact crowd number given the stadium is capped at 75 per cent, but police would patrol the event as if the stadium was full.
"There will be a significant number of police, not only at the site but across a three-ringed perimeter," he said.
"Transport hubs, from the moment you drive into the car park of this venue you will be met by police, and of course there will be a significant police presence at the turnstile areas."
Sydney's COVID-19 case numbers rose on Friday but there is yet to be a case in the Hunter during this outbreak.
People from Greater Sydney, the Blue Mountains, Central Coast, Wollongong and Shellharbour are banned from attending the Origin match, which was shifted from Stadium Australia to Broadmeadow this week.
An online petition calling for the match to be cancelled had garnered more than 4000 signatures late Friday.
Supt Humphrey said it was possible for people from Sydney and other banned areas to buy tickets using a fake address, but anyone caught at the match from those areas would face a $1000 fine.
He said "one or two" people had been caught at the boxing on Wednesday night and officers would be putting their Origin plan into practice at last night's South Sydney and North Queensland NRL match.
Supt Humphrey said people attending the Origin match should expect delays if they produce a digital licence, rather than a physical one, as officers would need to conduct checks on when the address was last changed.
He also said police would be more actively patrolling the use of face masks inside the ground and people could be fined $200 if they were not adhering to the guidelines.
