July 17 (Bloomberg) -- Australian health authorities say two Victorians have died after contracting swine flu, bringing the country’s tally to 31 deaths related to the virus.

Five people in New South Wales state with the H1N1 influenza virus died in recent days, Kerry Chant, the state’s chief health officer, said in a statement. Four of the victims had underlying health problems, making them susceptible to swine flu, she added.

The victims, including a 9-year-old boy, two men aged 29 and 78, and two women aged 55 and 71, were all from Sydney, a state health department spokeswoman said.

The deaths doubled New South Wales’s tally of swine flu- related deaths to 10, and the state has 2,673 confirmed cases of the virus, Chant said.

Three A-League soccer players were yesterday confirmed with having swine flu, the league said on its Web site.

Former Ghana international striker Lloyd Owusu has been in isolation from his Adelaide United teammates since July 12, while defender Robert Cornthwaite also tested positive to swine flu. Gold Coast United put four other players into quarantine as a “precaution” after forward Tahj Minniecon tested positive to the illness.

Australia’s national swine flu tally stands at 11,962 confirmed cases with 75 in intensive care units around the country, according to figures issued by the Department of Health and Ageing.

To contact the reporter for this story: Phoebe Sedgman at psedgman@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: July 17, 2009 01:34 EDT