Fremantle coach Ross Lyon says the AFL must consider scrapping the pre-finals bye after Sydney’s thumping preliminary final win over Geelong.
The week off before the playoffs – in addition to another break as reward for winning their qualifying final – meant the Cats had played only one game in the 27 days leading into Friday’s 37-point loss at the MCG.
Geelong looked far from switched on in the game’s early stages, giving up eight unanswered goals and Lyon says it’s clear the extra time off hurt their performance.
“Once you break that cycle, it’s impossible to replicate an AFL senior game over that period of time,” he told Fox Footy on Saturday.
“It’s indisputable what you saw at the start of the game. It’s going to be a real issue. I think they have to look at the formula.
“You’ve got to be rewarded for winning the most games (and finishing) top-four. That’s been fundamental to the competition. But that’s now dissipated that advantage.
“It’s now a potential negative if you have the week off (and) win your first final.”
Lyon is the latest AFL figure to weigh in against the bye, with Hawthorn skipper Luke Hodge also expressing concerns.
But Geelong coach Brad Scott said their opinion was unchanged – that they would rather have had it.
“We clearly need to analyse how we approached it,” he said after Friday night’s game.
“We were confident going in … we thought we gave ourselves every chance.
“It was completely in our control and we just didn’t deliver.”
The league introduced an end-of-season bye this year, wanting to stop the trend of finals-bound clubs resting players en masse in the final round of the regular season.
A poll last month showed all 18 coaches were against the concept, although Western Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge has since welcomed the opportunity to help several players recover from injuries.
AFL boss Gillon McLachlan has said the league will wait until after the finals to weigh up whether the bye should continue.
Matt
Guest
Not really the point as more QF winners get through 17 out of the last 18 and usually play other top 4 teams that have a game or percentage between them.. The slow start by both teams 100% shows 1 game in 27 days is not good match prep.. I hope Sydney win to make sure this farce is not carried to the enth degree...
Matt
Guest
It is obvious Veteran players can handle it to a degree but not newbies who need continuity... See Dangerfield and Selwoods game for reference... BTW lyon lost the Prelim final after resting those players...
Matt
Guest
Your talking about the final five system 26 years ago of which the team with the rest in 1990 lost in Essendon but it is completely irrelevant to the current competition teams are far more professional now than then.. It is not even comparable... As I said the bye clearly had an effect and top 4 teams invariably play each other and therefore usually only 1 game and percentage separate them and the QF winner got through 17 out 18 times...
Matt
Guest
But it has never happened before and usually top 4 teams are playing each other with only 1 game or percentage separating them on the ladder so that argument is null and void.. 17 out 18 QF winners had previously gone through...
anon
Guest
"Maybe, I wouldn’t have done it myself, but there were a few niggly injuries starting to gather in the group, plus they did it in 2013 with some success so they’d be something they would’ve weighed up when making that decision." I don't know what you're getting at. Lyon said by playing one game in 27 days you break the cycle and cannot compete at the required level in an AFL preliminary final. What's there to weigh up? You increase your chance of winning in double chance QF and decrease your chance of winning in a sudden death prelim.
Dalgety Carrington
Roar Guru
Maybe, I wouldn't have done it myself, but there were a few niggly injuries starting to gather in the group, plus they did it in 2013 with some success so they'd be something they would've weighed up when making that decision. Losing McPharlin while resting him was a bit of a reverso spanner in the works too.
anon
Guest
Most seasons team that finish 7th are absolute rubbish. The Bulldogs were only one win behind 2nd place.
anon
Guest
Yes they have to travel a long distance, but Sydney had to travel a long way to play Freo in the QF and then Hawthorn had to travel a long way to play the PF. Freo played that QF against Sydney on a 7 day break. They were always going to get a 7 day break having finished on top of the ladder. So fatigue was never going to be a factor going into the QF against Sydney. Yet Lyon still put his team in a position where they would be playing one game in 27 days if they won the QF against Sydney. Really stupid, especially when you know that "once you break that cycle, it’s impossible to replicate an AFL senior game over that period of time".
Dalgety Carrington
Roar Guru
The bye probably adds too muck luck into the piece.
Dalgety Carrington
Roar Guru
Freo had a pretty hefty travel schedule to contend with though.
Dalgety Carrington
Roar Guru
Different level of competition though. The games back in ye olde 70's and earlier were nowhere near as intense, with beers and pies to finish off Thursday's night training.
gyfox
Guest
:-)
Mister Football
Roar Guru
Lroy I'm not saying there is nothing to what you are intimating, but I don't think it's all that clear cut. By the way, it is wrong to suggest that playing 1 game in 27 days is something new is incorrect. That happened in the old final 4 system (which ran for decades). Let's take 1971 as an example. The top four at the end of the season was Hawthorn, St Kilda, Richmond and Collingwood. Richmond played Collingwood in the first week of the finals (Sat 4/9/71), both Hawthorn and St KIlda rest. Hawthorn beat St Kilda the following week and go straight into the granny, St Kilda play Richmond in the Prelim (Sat 18/9/71), Hawthorn have a rest. Hawthorn plays St Kilda in granny on Sat 25/9/71, having played only one game in the previous 26 days. This happened right through VFL history, in fact, it happened in the top 5 system as well (where the top team rested first week, played a semi the following week, and could win through to the grand final).
Kurt
Guest
Yeah, Gill we be absolutely gutted that the GWS vs Dogs preliminary final was the highest rated AFL game ever on STV and the second highest rated non GF game in AFL history. And he'll be absolutely fuming that the decider next week features two teams from the two biggest TV markets in the country. He really has messed up big time.
Aransan
Guest
We effectively had a final 4 masquerading as a final 8. The bye gives every team a chance and the teams just have to learn how to prepare given the bye.
Lroy
Guest
that is kinda funny I agree ;-) The Gorilla in the Italian suits must be fuming!!
Lroy
Guest
Like I said, its unprecedented for the two sides who EARNED the right to have a week off to go out the way they did. Just to confirm, as of now... there have been three times in AFL history where a side has had only 1 game in 27 days... each time that side has lost... its 100% failure rate...so it is a statistical FACT that the bye has affected how the finals have played out. ...1990 Bombers were red hot , ready to go after winning the second semi final... theres a draw in the prelim between the Eagles and Pies who then have to fight out a replay... Bombers had to sit on their hands for an extra week and lost the GF... Was Gilligan not aware of this?? The irony is after finishing 7th, the Dogs are probably favorites this weekend... they are playing at home and have already beaten the Swans on the road earlier this year.
Birdman
Guest
Taking absolutely nothing from the Dogs but it's delicious knowing that Gill inadvertently killed off the AFL Giants' prospects this year with this bye.
Mister Football
Roar Guru
As Leon said last night in the post-game presser, if you had weak teams coming up and winning finals games, you'd look at it a bit more carefully, but the Swans and dogs could hardly be looked upon in that manner (one obviously was the top team, and even the dogs finished the season with 15 wins, which is a very high number for 7th spot).
Lroy
Guest
The Giants also went down.. as far as Im aware its unprecedented for both sides who earned the week of to go out like that.