'I was squashed': Hawthorn president 'nearly died' in freak accident

Hawthorn president Jeff Kennett has revealed he nearly died when he was dragged underneath his car in a freak accident in the driveway of his Melbourne home.

The former Victorian premier was pulled under his car as it rolled down his driveway, before crashing through the front gates and onto the street outside his Surrey Hills home in late January.

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"I thought I was going to die, I really did," he told the You Cannot Be Serious podcast on Tuesday.

The two-time Liberal premier said he drove home, got out of his car to put rubbish in his bins and "looked around and saw the car starting to roll back".

"I stupidly tried to stop it, I couldn't get into the car and I was dragged under it," he said.

"The front door (of the car) was still open. The car kept rolling, I was very conscious that I had to keep my legs away from the front wheels."

Kennett, 72, said he clung to the driver's seat to stop himself from being dragged further under his car as it crashed through his front gates.

"They weren't picket gates, they were solid metal," he said.

"I was squashed. The car rolled out onto the road and over the road, onto the other side of the nature strip and came to a halt. I did think my time had arrived," he said.

The Hawks president said he suffered bruising and was later admitted to hospital for a six-hour operation on his injured neck.

Although Kennett - like the rest of the AFL world - has had no footy to watch amid the COVID-19 shutdown, there is hope the competition could be up and running again by July.

Hopes grow for AFL resumption in July

Port Adelaide chairman David Koch is cautiously optimistic the AFL season will emerge from the coronavirus shutdown in late July, with an even earlier return possible.

Koch has been buoyed by recent developments in the fight against the spread of COVID-19, with further progress to allow the resumption of games without fans or in quarantine hubs.

"If we're vigilant, and we keep making the progress that we are now, (playing by) the end of July is a possibility," Koch told SEN on Tuesday.

"But if there's a chink in the armour or we get too complacent and it flares up again, it puts it back.

"If we're lucky (it could be sooner). It really does depend on how well we do from now on."

Creating quarantine hubs, where teams are separated into three groups and isolated in different states to limit their exposure to coronavirus, is one of up to 15 scenarios the league is pondering.

The plan has sparked much debate, with senior coaches largely embracing the concept, while AFL Players' Association president Patrick Dangerfield has voiced his concerns.

GWS chairman Tony Shepherd is also wary of the risks, labelling hubs as potential cruise ships in the making.

Koch, who is confident all 18 clubs will ultimately survive the crisis, believes hubs shouldn't be disregarded as a way out of the shutdown.

"If we have to do it, if that's the plan that's decided on, we make it work," he said.

"If that's the only option available, the best option, then you've got to do what's best.

"We've go to think of the future of the game, not just your club or your own position, it is much bigger than that.

"We're literally fighting to keep it alive."

There were multiple reports on Tuesday - based on discussions between player agents and the AFL Players' Association - that certain players are set to be eligible for the federal government's JobKeeper scheme.

Given the 50 per cent pay cut AFL players are taking in April and May, rookies - who normally earn the AFL base salary of $85,000 - would reportedly be eligible for the $1500-a-fortnight (before tax) payment.

If games do not resume after May 31, the pay cut increases to 70 per cent of players' base salaries. Then, players normally on base salaries of up to $140,000 would reportedly also be eligible for JobKeeper support.

with Yahoo Sport staff