Scrap the pre-season and have a fair dinkum draw

Roar Pro

By Bruce Walkley, 21 Jan 2009 Bruce Walkley is a Roar Pro

Tagged:: AFL, Collingwood, Collingwood Magpies, Essendon, Essendon Bombers, grand final, Hawthorn, Hawthorn Hawks, Melbourne, Port Adelaide, Port Adelaide Power

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It’s time the AFL scrapped the pre-season kick and giggle event and ran a fair dinkum home-and-away competition.

For too many years the draw has been lopsided and unfair to clubs – some much more so than others – and, more particularly, the long-suffering fans of every team except the ones outside Victoria.

Sydney and Brisbane both get to play 11 games at home and 11 away, while Adelaide, Port Adelaide, West Coast and Subiaco all have 12 because they play each other in their local derbies, as well as their 11 games against visiting teams.

That’s as it should be – but that’s where the justice ends.

Collingwood play no fewer than 18 games in Melbourne, 14 of which are at their home ground, the MCG, even though five of those are classed as away fixtures.

The Magpies are “away” at the MCG to Geelong in round three, Essendon in round five, Melbourne in round 11, Carlton in round 17 and Richmond in round 20.

Historically the fixtures against Melbourne and Richmond can legitimately be classified as away, and one of the Magpies’ two games against those two teams would still have to be counted the same way in a pure home-and-away draw.

But the 14 games in Melbourne mean the Magpies play only once in Adelaide, Perth, Sydney and Brisbane, and they don’t set foot on Geelong’s home ground at all.

Nor do Carlton, Essendon, Hawthorn, St Kilda, West Coast and the Western Bulldogs.

Of the Cats’ eight home games, only three – against Melbourne, North Melbourne and Richmond – are against Victorian teams. There’s not even a local derby against the Western Bulldogs to give the Geelong fans something to get their teeth into.

Fremantle get to play at the MCG only twice, while West Coast and, amazingly, St Kilda, only once each.

The anomalies keep piling one on the top of the other, as Martin Windsor-Black, the indefatigable statistician on the Footystats website, http://footystats.freeservers.com, points out.

A few examples in Windsor-Black’s list: North Melbourne will be at home to Fremantle for the first time since 2004; Geelong will be classed as “at home” to Hawthorn for the first time since 2006, even though the game will be at the MCG; Hawthorn will have to travel twice to both Perth and Adelaide; all Brisbane’s games at the Gabba will be at night, prompting Windsor-Black to quip that Queensland should be renamed the Moonshine, rather than Sunshine, state; and, most interestingly to Tigers fans who are pinning their faith in Ben Cousins seeing out the season, Richmond have the luxury of seven straight games at the MCG from rounds 15 and 21.

The answer behind most of this lack of a level playing field in the fixturing is, of course, money. For example, Collingwood at Kardinia Park? What about the thousands they’d have to turn away?

And, you say, a true home-and-away draw would lengthen the season.

Yes, it would – by one week.

Last year the season stretched from the first NAB Cup game on February 9 until the grand final on September 27. This year the spread will be the same, from February 7 until September 26, although last year the pre-season competition occupied five weekends, and this year it will be six.

If you take away the weekend’s rest between the NAB Cup final and the first round and there’s only one extra week needed from start to finish for a true 30-week draw.

I’m sure there are plenty of coaches who’d welcome every weekend meaning as much as the other, rather than fronting up for what are essentially meaningless practice games once their teams have been knocked out in the pre-season.

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The Crowd Says (23) | Page 1 of Comments

Pippinu said | January 21st 2009 @ 7:40am | Report comment

Victorians have had about as much time for the pre-season cup as rep footy going back over thirty years.

I get the impression that the AFL would have ditched it yonks ago except for the fact that the sponsors love it for some reason and pay absolutely big bucks to retain it – it’s rare for any comp to knock back the lure of sponsorship dollars!

Of course, even if we could get to a 30 week home and away season (and I still think that would be a big if), we’re back to square 1 as soon as we move to an 18 team comp.

The other interesting and pertinent aspect of this issue is the fact that the players union advocated a 17 round comp (each team playin geach other once), with perhaps an extended finals series. Clearly that’s too far the other way, so the ideal position will be found somewhere in between (probably around 24 or 26 rounds).

The fairest thing that can occur (in a world where everyone doesn’t play each other twice) is to be able to devise a draw where all Victorian teams are playing at least once in each of the the other four capitals, perhaps alterating the team they play against each season.

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Kazama said | January 21st 2009 @ 7:52am | Report comment

I agree wholeheartedly, Bruce. IMO the NAB Cup doesn’t add much to the AFL calendar. The fact that there probably won’t be a NAB Cup match played at AAMI Stadium this season shows how little the fans down here care about the competition.

The AFL has an opportunity to have a balanced season. Nobody takes a great deal of interest in the NAB Cup, so why not scrap it and have a 30-round fixture? I think financially it is the right move as well, because obviously you’d get a hell of a lot more people going to games for premiership points and make more off the TV rights and advertising.

As for the imbalance in the number of home games the Victorian clubs get, well, I don’t think there’s much we can do about that considering there are 9 Melbourne teams plus Geelong in the competition. It allows the AFL to trot out the better revenue excuse. Imagine the uproar if they started to force interstate teams to play their home games against Collingwood at the MCG – well, how is that really any different from what they do to Geelong?

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Michael C said | January 21st 2009 @ 8:42am | Report comment

3 issues here -

1. the need for practice matches full stop
2. the desire for a balanced draw/entwined with the length of season
3. the value of a pre season piece of silverware

a sub text to the above in the 16 club scenario is the potential of an 18 club scenario.

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Michael C said | January 21st 2009 @ 8:58am | Report comment

re 1. the need for practice matches full stop -

presently, the reigning premier and runner up – by virtue of the later finish the previous season, are invariably ‘behind’ other clubs in preparation come the ‘practice match’ nab cup/challenge time frame.
Do we need clubs to play matches over 4 weeks, in the heat of Feb and March, on harder grounds – risking injury etc – - just to ‘prepare’ for round 1?
The present system allows new players to be trialled in potentially the best mix of senior AFL players that they will see all year – - – even if the intensity is pegs below par. Is this any more valuable than the season starting 4 weeks earlier? Question – - would we expect the VFL, SANFL, WAFL to start 4 weeks earlier to allow the fringe players to be playing fair dinkum 2nd tier matches rather than just perhaps a Werribee vs Sandy practice match in mid March?
Personally I believe practice matches are important – - whether 4 is the right number?
Presently the format of a pre-season comp is a knock out format with 16 into 8 to 4 to 2……works a treat.
How would the format be structured for 18 teams???? Would 18 teams see the previous years day GF sides missing out? How would we construct it?? Or, back to a round robin type format? A partial lightening premiership format?

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Michael C said | January 21st 2009 @ 9:05am | Report comment

2. the desire for a balanced draw/entwined with the length of season

16 teams goes into 30.

Is 30 weeks really achievable? Plus a 4 weeks finals series?………a 34 week season.

It ain’t a softer game like soccer – - – we’d be overly risking the long term health/fitness of the key asset – the players. Or – - would it be the ideal way to increase broadcast rights, to achieve a greater market dominance over the non-core-overlap sports? Would the AFL have appropriate access for a 34 week season at the key venues shared with cricket?

People seem to love the 22 wk season.

But – - if we plan to go to 17 and then 18 clubs………will we required a 32 and then 34 week H&A season??

Or – - with more clubs – - do you construct a H&A season split over 2 years (effectively) – - and actually include a ramped up pre season tournament.
Or with 18 clubs – - a 17 round season, perhaps a 5 week finals series or 2 conferences with subsequent conference play offs?
And balance with either a ramped up pre season OR – - a proper SoO carnival that runs 2 divisions and does it properly with all states/territories.

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Michael C said | January 21st 2009 @ 9:09am | Report comment

3. the value of a pre season piece of silverware -

always a secondary trophy,

clubs value 4 pts in Rnd 1 more highly………but……..

the fans – especially of struggling clubs – love a trophy, any trophy. St.Kilda won’t want to give theirs back. It’s still an achievement…….

……….and perhaps, as above, in the future with 17 and 18 clubs – - then, the pre season comp might actually be ramped up? Become more significant? The trophy more highly valued?

Obviously, an extended format can’t be knock out from the outset…….

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Forgetmenot said | January 21st 2009 @ 9:31am | Report comment

There are a lot of anomalies in the draw.
Yes they are caused by a variety of reasons. Should this mean that the pre season comp is removed.
I think think the NAB cup has a vital role in the season. It provides practice for the teams, and also allows for exhibition games in places likeSouth Africa and Dubai.

With it removed the season could be longer, but there would also be a need for practice matches. We want to see skilled football in the first round. Perhaps 2 weeks practice matches would be ideal.
And with hardly any practice matches and nothing to aim for, perhaps the AFL will finallly be tempted to play matches for premiership points overseas in an attempt to grow the game.

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Redb said | January 21st 2009 @ 12:10pm | Report comment

The NAB Cup has been used lately to fixture games in various places from non traditional footy areas such as Cairns to tradtional country venues like Albany in WA. Its a good program, just dont expect anyone to take it too seriously. Practice games are worthwhile and help some early decision making on blooding young kids, they are useful for trialling rules changes,etc they are effectively friendlies.

I never worry too much about the draw, its part and parcel of the comp, if your good enough the draw won’t matter.

Redb

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Forgetmenot said | January 21st 2009 @ 12:14pm | Report comment

RedB,

I looked at the draw for this years NAB cup and there seem to be a lot of games at Telstra Dome. Another way that Victorians are holding the game back.

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Redb said | January 21st 2009 @ 12:36pm | Report comment

Forgetmenot,

There are 10 Vic teams so I guess a few have to be played here.

Whilst we’re on the subject of holding the game back and with tongue firmly planted in the cheek, can you give me an insight into when the SANFL or the WAFL were going to actually try and grow the game nationally, seen as the VFL took the step 20 years ago.

Redb

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