When Tasmania enter the AFL, the fixture is set for a major overhaul and is heading towards a 24-game season.
But the added match, and the recently welcomed Wildcard Round, has extended the season, placing a greater load on the players. In turn, football boss Greg Swann has already begun assessing ways to reduce game time.
“We did change those rules and we've knocked off three minutes per game. But is it enough? Probably not,” Swann told Channel Seven.
Rules such as:
- last disposal - no boundary throw-ins assist in getting the ball back in play
- centre ball-ups (to avoid a re-bounce)
- kick-in time lowered from 12 seconds to eight - aligning with free kicks and marks around the ground
- removal of ruck nominations and umpires waiting to ball the football up
Could the shorter quarters we saw during COVID return when Tassie joins the league?
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Swann hinted at the fixture extending to 24 games - increasing by one when the Devils join - which will likely contain a match against each club, plus six double-ups, including two neutral rounds (one being Gather Round).
“When in a couple of years time, obviously when Tassie come in, if we go from 22 to 24 games, that will definitely be an issue that you will have to reduce the game time. So we'll have a look at that, perhaps in the off-season," he added.
“You certainly don't want (games) getting longer, that's for sure. So we'll have a look at those things.”
The AFL got a good look at 16-minute quarters during the 2020 COVID-19-impacted season when the competition was forced to turn around matches more often than not on shorter game breaks.
