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Is the AFL’s Opening Round broken? | 03:28
But Lions legend Jonathan Brown believes the AFL would be better served by holding a ‘Northern Round’ in the middle of winter, rather than starting the season in Queensland and NSW.
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Only two of the scheduled four games took place however, with the Brisbane-Geelong (Gabba) and Gold Coast-Essendon (People First Stadium) clashes postponed due to the threat of Cyclone Alfred.
Montagna agreed with calls from Carlton coach Michael Voss to have nine games played across every state – two each in Queensland, NSW, South Australia and Western Australia plus one in Victoria – which would likely send up to eight Melbourne teams interstate.
“I think it’s absolutely certain to go on next year in its third incarnation – and I think it’s quite likely to be a very similar shape to this year,” Ralph told On The Couch.
“I know the AFL feels like they know that it’s on the nose in Victoria the heartland – certainly they’re not opposed to considering a Victorian game on the Sunday afternoon – but their view is that it creates an extra week of content.
“I know they talk about whether this should be dovetailed into another round potentially, (but) the point is it’s an extra weekend over and above every other round.
“Last year the heartland clubs protested so much, in Round 1 they set an AFL attendance record. So the AFL says they don’t really vote with their feet.
“Every one of those four northern states clubs had a massive year-on-year attendance figure and all setting those attendance records very early.
“For me, this is not going anywhere, even though the AFL is very much aware of the strident opposition of Victoria.”
Triple premiership Lion Brown, who lives in Queensland and is a big northern states footy advocate, said there was “an opportunity to put blockbuster games” more often in Queensland and NSW.
“And the time to celebrate the northern clubs is in the wintertime when everyone wants to get out of the southern states, get up to a bit of warmth. There could be that opportunity around that split round weekend where you have the four games on a particular weekend up there in the school holidays – ‘The Northern Round’ – and then the other clubs play on the alternate weekend.
“That could be a better way to celebrate it, I think, but anytime they get to promote northern states football is a good thing. I think it was more positive than negative.”
“It reminded me of a year when there were no finals in Victoria,” Lewis told On The Couch. “I think Victorians always feel a little bit left out when there’s no football down here.
The Hawks defeated the Swans. Picture: Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty ImagesSource: Getty Images“Being at the Sydney game on Friday night, I loved it. There was a real buzz around the ground, there was a lot of Hawthorn people who had travelled up, there was a lot of Sydney people there … I thought it was a great spectacle. Even on the Sunday with the Giants game – 20,000 people – I still thought it was a great spectacle.
“For me, any football is better than no football. I understand the opposition to it – there will always be opposition from Victorian teams who aren’t participating in it – but for me, I like it. It was clearly compromised because of the cyclone, but I like the idea.”
Buckley said he believed the AFL was “making decisions based on the best interest of the game”.
“I think we’ll find something to whinge at, no matter what happens,” he told On The Couch.
“The fact we missed those two games has put it under the spotlight, but there’s the broadcast arrangements, you’re trying to get the clubs right, ground availability. To put the draw together must be a very difficult task, so far be it for me to look at that and criticise the way it pans out.
“It’s a long off-season and if you’re a supporter of your club, you want to see them play as soon as you possibly can. So to have to wait that extra week, there’s a little bit of pain in that. But gee there’s a lot of supporters looking forward to this week – as we are – to see the majority of the clubs go around for the first time.
“I thought last year was excellent – four really big games that kicked us off – this year it was two due to climate issues. I don’t have an issue with it at all.”
