AFL chief Andrew Demetriou has dismissed suggestions the annual Dreamtime clash between Essendon and Richmond should be shared with other clubs.
Essendon host Richmond on Saturday night at the MCG with a crowd of over 80,000 expected for the eighth Dreamtime game which is the highlight of the league’s indigenous-themed round of matches.
“It’s an amazing game, the Dreamtime game,” Demetriou said on Thursday night.
“Every time it has been played the crowd has been extraordinary. The pre-match (entertainment) has been incredible.
“There’s a real anticipation around the game. It’s another great concept by the great Kevin Sheedy (ex-Essendon coach) who was involved in it.
“It’s a real celebration. I’m glad it’s going to be nearly a sell-out.”
Demetriou laughed off speculation on radio that other clubs were seeking the chance to compete in the Dreamtime clash.
“I haven’t had any clubs come to us and put their (case forward),” Demetriou told ABC2’s
“The Marngrook Footy Show”.
“It got talked about on radio this morning because we’ve got a lot of people talking about footy.
“What we try to do is we try to find a game or an event for every club throughout the year.
“If it’s the opening game Richmond-Carlton, or the Dreamtime game or the Anzac Day game or even the Monday-night game St Kilda-Carlton, we try to make that an event.
“I hope the Dreamtime game stays with Richmond and Essendon. They really were the originators of the concept.”
Demetriou said the AFL’s objective was to have 100 indigenous players on club lists in a season within the next few years.
“We’re at about 80 at the moment,” Demetriou said.
He said the game was almost unrecognisable 20 years on from what it looked like in 1992 and he said massive changes would continue in the next couple of decades.
“Hopefully we’ll have a real national footprint. We’ll have a much larger penetration in NSW and Queensland and I suspect we’ll be playing games overseas for (premiership) points,” he said.
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