Australian rules football is one of the nation's favourite pastimes. It is a game steeped in and sustained by its tradition, beloved for its singularity as much as its spectacle.
However, this has rarely hindered those in charge of the country's most-watched code from attempting to edit its foundations. History is littered with ill-fated, albeit well-intentioned experiments, undertaken for a variety of reasons. Some were executed in an effort to broaden the game's appeal to the dormant masses, particularly in the northern frontier; some were an attempt to level the playing field, while others were in aid of globalising this uniquely Australian sport.
We're counting down 10 of these AFL experiments, and casting a verdict on their respective efficacies.
AFLX
An idea borne in aid of the China experiment, AFLX was a modified, shortened, hybrid version of the great game, played on a rectangular field, with seven players on each side. In its second evolution, an eighth would be added.
Fears that China lacked the infrastructure to host games in their purest form sped up the development of the bastardised format, which ran in the pre-seasons of 2018 and 2019. Billed as the AFL's answer to cricket's Twenty20 or Rugby's Sevens formats, hype and public interest quickly gave way to a morbid, humorous fascination, once the ball was bounced.
In its first year, all 18 clubs fielded a side for round robin competition across Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide, with the Brisbane Lions notably taking home the spoils in the Harbour City, mere months after claiming the wooden spoon in the AFL.
In the following year, an 'all-star' format, of sorts, was introduced, with four squads made up of the AFL's elite playing in good spirit, what was essentially, low-quality hit and giggle.
The traditional coin toss made way for a game of paper, scissors, rock. Players were infamously allowed to wear civvies on match day, with Alex Rance memorably entering Marvel Stadium on a skateboard, in a white suit.
'Rampage', captained by Richmond legend Jack Riewoldt, claimed ultimate 'honours', before the concept was abandoned altogether ahead of the 2020 season.
Respected ABC journalist Richard Hinds was particularly scathing in his assessments of the concept, labelling it a 'hollow, unappealing, pressure-free, atmosphere-deficient, oval-in-a-rectanglular-hole yawn-fest', and the 'first attempted use of Victoria's new euthanasia laws', in his 2018 column.
Verdict: The format is now remembered with an ironic fondness. A fever dream we all lived through in those funny years that immediately preceded the pandemic. I'd love a Bolts guernsey for the pool room, if anyone is willing to sell me one. 2/10.
