League makes changes to NAB Cup

The AFL is set to make major changes to the start and finish of the NAB Cup, their official pre-season competition.

The league made the cup draw public today, scheduling the opening round of their pre-season competition over three weekends.

They have cited television ratings and heat as the reasons.

They are also likely to abandon the system of awarding the grand final to the team that scores more points in the competition.

“We’re of the view that we might look at a best fit policy to make sure that the most amount of people are going to be able see the game,” AFL chief operating officer Gillon McLachlan said on the league’s website.

The grand final venue will depend on a number of factors, including which teams are playing.

“We’ll want the game to be played where it’s the best fit and that’ll depend on what teams are playing and where we think the best venue is to hold the grand final,” McLachlan said.

The NAB Cup will start with Collingwood playing West Coast at Newlands Cricket Ground in Cape Town, South Africa on February 7.

Three games are scheduled for the February 13-15 weekend, with the remaining four matches in round one set for a week later.

The AFL have introduced a three-week round one for the first time so there are more prime-time television slots.

The league also want to avoid late-afternoon summer heat, a regular problem in the pre-season competition.

Round one will feature several clubs which only played each other once during this year’s regular season.

It will be the second time the AFL has staged an official pre-season game in South Africa, following the 1998 game at Newlands between Fremantle and the Brisbane Lions.

Carlton and Fremantle played an exhibition match in South Africa earlier this year.

The grand final of the knockout competition is scheduled for March 14.

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