Is it really necessary to have the pre round 1 bye week?

Bring-Back-Powell

Norm Smith Medallist
Nov 27, 2005
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Why do they actually have the week off before the season starts?
Is it really necessary?

The players bang on about wanting 2 byes during the year, so why don't they start the season a weekend earlier (ie -this weekend) and go straight from the JLT to round 1? They could then transfer the bye week to rounds 8-10 and have the second bye week in July.

Do we want the Pre Round 1 bye scrapped and go straight from the JLT to round 1? or are we all happy with the status quo?
 
Sep 27, 2008
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So we don't detract from the exciting final round of the AFLW.

They should have the AFLW GF on this weekend when there is no AFL to compete with it, instead they schedule it next weekend when no one will give a rat's arse about it as the first round of the AFL kicks off.
 
Aug 27, 2014
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From memory it started out to put some distance between the pre-season night series premiership win and round one but given there is no longer a pre-season cup that no longer is a reason.

I think it got more complicated as years went on when moved away from the league being scheduled with all games played on same day or same time to the focus on tv coverage and spreading out all the games to different days and time slots. So it is complicated with game starting on a Thursday night for Carlton and Richmond needing to play their final practice match this Thursday night just gone. The reality is though even if they had a game on two nights back you can just imagine Carlton and Richmond would give their main senior players a run for a half and then tend to take them off and put in cotton wool for rest of the night. So the last practice match would not be much of a good hit out. With Carlton and Richmond playing last weekend the AFL got more of fair dinkum hit out as you going to get in pre-season. We played Hawks in Tasmania and for most part was most of our best 22 taking part. They took Kruezer off early with a rolled ankle but let most of others have a good hit out.
 
Aug 13, 2006
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We don't need to start the season any earlier than next week. The weathers still way too warm how it is. The NRL and it's 400 game season starts now but I don't feel the need to be copy cats. Enjoy the last week off before the real stuff starts.

That said, I'm always surprised they can't get the Grand Prix on this weekend.
 
Aug 27, 2014
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Remember when they tried a split round for round one.
1979 from recall our round three clash of Carlton and Essendon opened the season.

wiki....
1979 VFL season
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Round 3 (part one of split round)
Carlton 14.17 (101) Essendon 11.14 (80) VFL Park 41,717 31 March 1979

Despite being formally a part of Round 3, the Carlton vs Essendon match was played as a stand-alone match on the Saturday before Round 1, and was therefore the opening match of the season.


Round 1
Collingwood 9.15 (69) Fitzroy 21.23 (149) Victoria Park 29,345 7 April 1979
Carlton 23.13 (151) Geelong 15.11 (101) Princes Park 24,771 7 April 1979
South Melbourne 15.21 (111) Richmond 19.11 (125) Lake Oval 18,603 7 April 1979
St Kilda 19.14 (128) Hawthorn 14.19 (103) Moorabbin Oval 22,060 7 April 1979
Melbourne 18.17 (125) Footscray 16.17 (113) MCG 24,133 7 April 1979
North Melbourne 17.27 (129) Essendon 16.13 (109) Arden Street Oval 22,633 7 April 1979

Round 2

Footscray 13.16 (94) North Melbourne 20.13 (133) Western Oval 23,457 14 April 1979
Fitzroy 12.14 (86) South Melbourne 21.13 (139) Junction Oval 19,437 14 April 1979
Hawthorn 13.24 (102) Collingwood 19.18 (132) Princes Park 29,355 14 April 1979
Geelong 15.16 (106) Melbourne 9.13 (67) Kardinia Park 23,858 16 April 1979
Essendon 21.22 (148) St Kilda 9.10 (64) Windy Hill 26,499 16 April 1979
Richmond 13.18 (96) Carlton 23.9 (147) MCG 59,942 16 April 1979

Round 3 (split round)
Carlton 14.17 (101) Essendon 11.14 (80) VFL Park 41,717 31 March 1979 (played weeks earlier)

South Melbourne 18.10 (118) Melbourne 16.15 (111) Lake Oval 14,431 21 April 1979
Hawthorn 18.15 (123) Geelong 11.17 (83) Princes Park 14,703 21 April 1979
St Kilda 15.14 (104) Footscray 16.13 (109) Moorabbin Oval 18,275 21 April 1979
Richmond 20.12 (132) Fitzroy 16.16 (112) MCG 24,635 21 April 1979
North Melbourne 18.19 (127) Collingwood 14.15 (99) Arden Street Oval 29,747 21 April 1979

Despite being formally a part of Round 3, the Carlton vs Essendon match was played as a stand-alone match on the Saturday before Round 1, and was therefore the opening match of the season.


Also in 1991 season the season was opened in weird fashion. We did not even play week one.
I remember our first match of season was to go over to Adelaide on long Easter weekend and play our first match of season against the Crows. It was their round two clash as they played Hawks in round one whilst we were on the bye to start the season. There were 15 clubs in that year so byes were regular part of it for the year. We christened Crows with their first loss in the AFL on their on home turf. Was good weekend.
 

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Dec 15, 2009
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I don't understand why they spread 2 JLT games over 3 weeks, and then have another weekend off before the season, so you end up playing 2 games in a month.

I think the week off is ok, but just play the JLT over 2 weeks.
 
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