Gillon McLachlan says the AFL will discuss getting rid of runners entirely, following Nick Maxwell's controversial positioning for Greater Western Sydney during the side's one-point loss to Carlton in Round 12.
The AFL announced on Tuesday it would investigate the Giantsโ use of their runner after vision emerged from the game which appeared to show Maxwell spending too long on the ground and standing in strategic positions when the Blues were kicking-in after a behind.
Maxwell and the Giants were cleared of any wrong doing, however, League CEO Gillon McLachlan, suggested runners could soon be abolished all together.
"Increasingly, with rotations now, people are actually having a good debate about whether we even need runners," McLachlan said on his regular Friday morning spot on Melbourne's 3AW Radio with Neil Mitchell.
"Becasuse the players are coming off so regularly, the coach can talk to to them directly, players can take messages out because they are well drilled, well coached and bright men, I think it's a good question.
"I know that they will have a look at it, Simon Lethlean and the footy department will talk to the clubs about whether we need runners.
"Certainly there seems to be a unified voice, get them off the field."
Runners getting in the way of the opposition and "filling space" as McLachlan put it, is not new and he revealed he even engaged in the practice when he used to be a runner for his local team.
"I was a runner for my team for a while, I used to do that... you'd get in the way if you could.
"I was a large vessel that filled a lot of space."
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