The AFL should drop the final nine talk

 
Michael DiFabrizio Columnist

By , 13 Sep 2009 Michael DiFabrizio is a Roar Expert

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Simon Goodwin of Adelaide (L) and Nick Maxwell of Collingwood (R) shake hands before the AFL 1st Semi Final between the Collingwood Magpies and the Adelaide Crows at the MCG.

Simon Goodwin of Adelaide (L) and Nick Maxwell of Collingwood (R) shake hands before the AFL 1st Semi Final between the Collingwood Magpies and the Adelaide Crows at the MCG.

The AFL’s top eight system cops a few whacks every now and then. Like this week, for example, in the post-match digestion of Adelaide’s 96-point thumping of Essendon. Or like last year, when poor crowds turned out in Adelaide and Sydney.

No one can shy away from the fact the top eight system has its flaws. Anomalies will pop up from time to time.

This year it was bound to happen given the on-again, off-again relationship certain sides had with eighth spot.

Last year with the crowd issues, sides like Adelaide and Sydney were perceived to be at the end of their run of finals. So you would expect interest to be weaker than it was, say, this year with the Brisbane Lions – or with the born-again Crows for that matter.

But let’s be honest. At the end of the day, it is the best system out there in terms of keeping the high standing of the finals in tact at the same time as attaining the AFL’s goals of high attendances and TV ratings.

For every Adelaide-Essendon, there’s a Brisbane-Carlton.

For every year of dubious crowd figures (2008), there’s a year of record-nudging figures (2009).

The flaws in the current set-up aren’t overly prevalent, they just simply bob up every now and then. If there’s any system on the cards at the moment should be given a whack, it sure isn’t the current one.

Expansion is immanent for the AFL, and so there has been talk, naturally, of expanding the finals series in line with the introduction of new teams.

This is an example of something that sounds okay in theory, but looks horrific in practice.

The likely final nine system, which is explained in detail here, would give the minor premier an awkward path to grand final day, as they receive a bye in week one and then – should they keep winning – another one two weeks later.

Not every side thrives with the week off. You can’t tell me Geelong have been at their best during their last two preliminary finals. Other teams struggle to fire in the first half of the game after the break and are susceptible to being caught out.

Perhaps more dumbfounding, however, is the fact that ninth place – the team that otherwise wouldn’t make it – will act merely as a token addition. Their finals run would include: a first-up game against the fourth-placed side, then a clash with either the second or third-placed side, then a clash with another top three side after that.

And if they are some how able to pull off the impossible and win all those games, what is their reward? A spot in the preliminary final. That’s it. They’re still a game away from making the grand final.

It’s hard enough for the eighth-placed side in the current system to make an impact. So how would it be possible for ninth to do it with that run?

It’s difficult to see the AFL’s justification. Wouldn’t two extra teams compliment the current system?

The final nine alternative would be disjointed. It would be a mess. Worse still, it would exacerbate the flaws of the current system, to the point where they can no longer be passed off as “anomalies” that appear “from time to time”.

Having fourth play ninth isn’t going to avoid one-sided contests. Over-rewarding home and away season form – and restricting those benefits to the top three – isn’t going to avoid one-sided contests.

The confusing system of snakes and ladders – with only one extra “elimination” final – won’t help reduce the number of games that fail to ignite the kind of public interest befitting of a final, either.

The league has been going back and forth on this idea ever since they first floated it this time last year. In April, Gillon McLachlan came out saying the AFL was content with and sticking with the status quo.

“We are pretty happy with the finals system we have got in place, and there hasn’t been any work going on to review it,” he said.

But last month, Andrew Demetriou threw the idea out there once again. “If there’s a final nine, the top team might get a bye, you might get a five-week finals series,” the AFL boss openly pondered.

It’s all a little bit mystifying, to be honest. But it’s also quite fitting, in an ironic kind of way.

Following what the AFL are saying about the final nine is about as confusing as, well, following the final nine itself.

Follow Michael on twitter @mdifabrizio
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