How Round 1 next year should unfold, plus other fixture proposals

With the current season about to come to its end, several clubs have submitted their requests for next year’s fixture, one of which includes Essendon wanting to celebrate the return of their suspended players with a Friday night MCG blockbuster against Melbourne.

The Bombers have requested to face the Demons, one of two clubs they have defeated this season, in what would be the first Friday night match for the year, twenty-four hours after Carlton and Richmond kick off proceedings in their traditional Thursday night opener.

Among those set to return for the Bombers next year include Dyson Heppell, Brent Stanton, Heath Hocking and Cale Hooker, among others, while the future of captain Jobe Watson still remains unclear.

It would be just the Bombers’ third Round 1 home game since 2000, and first since 2011. The club has started three of their past four seasons interstate (Adelaide in 2013, Sydney last year and the Gold Coast this year).

“It’s been a long time since Essendon have played a home game consistently in Round 1,” CEO Xavier Campbell told the Herald Sun.

“We always seem to play an away game, or a game at Etihad Stadium in a secondary timeslot. Above and beyond the normal blockbuster requests, we’ve put a request in for Friday night, Round 1. We have flagged Melbourne, because obviously a lot of our games are already locked away.”

The Bombers haven’t started a season in Melbourne since 2014 (when they defeated North Melbourne by 39 points at Etihad Stadium) and not at the MCG since 2010 (when they lost to then-reigning premiers the Geelong Cats by 31 points).

The potential match-up between Essendon and Melbourne could see Jake Melksham and, potentially, Michael Hibberd make their Melbourne debuts against their old club, in addition to this also being Simon Goodwin’s senior coaching debut.

By this time, Goodwin, who was an assistant coach at the Bombers between 2011 and 2014, will have been trained sufficiently enough by his predecessor, Paul Roos, in the lead-up to his takeover of the Melbourne Football Club.

The match between the two clubs earlier this season saw the Bombers pull off an massive against-the-odds 13-point win at the MCG, extinguishing any pre-season fears that the club would endure a winless 2016 season in the process.

It was highlighted by the stunning performance of Darcy Parish, who was overlooked by the Dees and subsequently taken by the Bombers, who had the very next pick after them, in last year’s draft.

For his efforts, he was named the Rising Star nominee for Round 2 (Melbourne chose Clayton Oliver, who himself was named the previous round’s nominee, with their first pick).

It continued a rivalry between the two clubs whereby the underdog prevailed in six of seven matches dating back to 2010, with the only expected result coming in 2013 when the Bombers thrashed the Dees by a whopping 148 points.

That being said, even when the Dees were at rock bottom as the Bombers were this season, they still managed to pull off an upset six-point win in Round 10, 2012. At the time, the Dees had yet to win a game that season, while the Bombers’ only defeat to that point came by a point against Collingwood on Anzac Day.

The game also has the potential to draw strong ratings for the Seven Network, which again will televise the Friday night match and still has an option to broadcast the Saturday afternoon match if Foxtel decides to on sell that timeslot to them.

At present, Seven only have the rights to three matches a round per season as part of the 2017-2021 broadcasting deal, in particular the Friday and Saturday night matches, and the Sunday afternoon match.

If it is to gain the Saturday afternoon match, it would provide a strong lead-in audience to the evening news, which in turn would flow into the Saturday night match, as has been the case since 2012.

With Dennis Cometti retiring from commentating at the end of the current season, either Brian Taylor or Hamish McLachlan could fill his shoes alongside Bruce McAvaney on the Friday night commentary team from next year onwards.

The Bombers will also retain their blockbuster Anzac Day, Country Game and Dreamtime at the G matches against Collingwood, the Geelong Cats and Richmond respectively as they look to continue rebuilding their tarnished brand.

They have also argued that their 2017 fixture should not be compromised as a result of the club’s expected on-field struggles this season, with CEO Xavier Campbell saying “everyone should acknowledge” that the Bombers were a special case this season due to the suspensions of half of their best 22.

Coach John Worsfold was also quoted as saying that Channel Seven would be the biggest losers if Essendon were excluded from the premium timeslots next year.

As for how the rest of Round 1 next season should unfold, the traditional Carlton versus Richmond season opener is expected to remain despite both clubs suffering contrasting below-par seasons this year.

It will be the turn of the Adelaide Crows, Fremantle, GWS Giants and Brisbane Lions to play in their home states in Round 1, while Collingwood will push hard to play at home after starting their past two seasons in Brisbane (last year) and Sydney (this year).

The Crows will start off against the Geelong Cats at the Adelaide Oval in what shapes as a Saturday night prime-time blockbuster, with Patrick Dangerfield to come up against his old club for the third time (or fourth if the Crows and Cats meet in this year’s finals).

The redevelopment of the Cats’ home ground, Simonds Stadium, is not due for completion until at least May next year, so the Cats will have to play their first few home matches at either the MCG or Etihad Stadium.

The Lions will be hoping for a good crowd when they welcome the Sydney Swans to the Gabba for a fourth straight year, while the Dockers will begin with a Western Derby against the West Coast Eagles and the Pies will face St Kilda at the MCG.

Easter next year falls in Round 4, meaning Hawthorn and the Geelong Cats will have to wait until then to resume hostilities. The GWS Giants should get one match at Spotless Stadium before the Sydney Royal Easter Show forces the club on the road for at least six weeks.

That match is to be against Hawthorn, against whom they produced one of their most stunning performances in Round 6 this year when they won by 75 points.

Their next home game in Sydney won’t come until at least Round 9, meaning they’ll have to play two of their three games in Canberra between rounds three to eight. The first Sydney Derby will be at the SCG during this period.

The other two matches will see the Western Bulldogs play Port Adelaide on the Saturday while North Melbourne will play the Gold Coast Suns on the Sunday. Both matches will be at Etihad Stadium.

And so, this is how Round 1 should unfold (all starting times are local)
Thursday, March 23
Richmond versus Carlton, MCG, 7:20pm (Seven/FF 504)

Friday, March 24
Essendon versus Melbourne, MCG, 7:50pm (Seven/FF 504)

Saturday, March 25
Western Bulldogs versus Port Adelaide, Etihad Stadium, 1:45pm (FF 504)
GWS Giants versus Hawthorn, Spotless Stadium, 4:35pm (FF 504)
Brisbane Lions versus Sydney Swans, Gabba, 6:25pm (FF 503)
Adelaide Crows versus Geelong Cats, Adelaide Oval, 7:10pm (Seven/FF 504)

Sunday, March 26
North Melbourne versus Gold Coast Suns, Etihad Stadium, 1:10pm (FF 504)
Collingwood versus St Kilda, MCG, 3:20pm (Seven or FF 503)*
Fremantle versus West Coast Eagles, Domain Stadium, 2:40pm (FF 504)

NOTE: FF 504 is the primary Fox Footy Channel. FF 503 will continue to be used when matches overlap each other.

* – at this stage it is unknown whether Seven will gain a fourth free-to-air match.

Among some of my other proposed points for the 2017 fixture:
* The Country Game between Essendon and the Geelong Cats would be held in Round 3.
* Easter falls in Round 4, with Carlton, North Melbourne and the Western Bulldogs all bidding to play in the Good Friday game that round. Hawthorn and the Geelong Cats will also renew hostilities that weekend.
* As always, the grand final rematch will be held twice in the regular season.
* As 2017 is the final season in which Domain Stadium will be used before Fremantle and West Coast move into the new Perth Stadium in 2018, their final home games at Subiaco should be against the Brisbane Lions and Richmond in rounds 22 and 23 respectively.^
* The last Western Derby at the ground will take place in Round 21, and it will be West Coast’s home game, Fremantle having already had the hosting rights in Round 1.
* Where possible, every club must play at least one match in each of Western Australia, South Australia and Queensland.
* Traditional four-way rivals Essendon, Carlton, Richmond and Collingwood will face each other twice in the regular season. This has not happened since 1999.
* The Pride Game should be retained, with St Kilda to either host the Sydney Swans (again) or Fremantle at Etihad Stadium.
* The GWS Giants will push hard for a Friday night match, on the basis of their much improved results and record-breaking 2016 season.
* Once again, strong performing clubs will feature more often in the premium timeslots.

^ – both were the first opponents for both clubs at Subiaco Oval, though in 1995 it was the Brisbane Bears whom the Dockers played. The Dockers’ first home game was against Essendon at the WACA in Round 2.