Merit in fixture changes

On face value, the processes announced for the structuring of the 2014 AFL fixture look to have considerable merit.

 

We don’t think there’s any doubt that players will benefit from an extra bye during a long season.

 

Similarly, we think the notion of weighting the fixture according to finishing position in the previous season makes sense.

 

Of course, the first game that will come up for discussion is the now-traditional Anzac Day game between Essendon and the Barcodes.

 

As the weighting proposal suggests, the days of fixturing predominantly for so-called “blockbuster” games is well past it’s use-by date. There’s certainly a case to be made for other teams to share in the Anzac Day experience, but there are few potential fixtures that would see a virtually guaranteed 80,000-plus crowd at the ‘G’, hushed through the minute’s silence.

 

AussieRulesBlog isn’t sad to see the end of the pre-season competition, which had become all-but meaningless. Simple practice matches will suffice nicely, thank you.