AFL Introduces Wild Card Round

[10571z]

It’s just a top 10. No team outside the 6 have any chance now.

 

[Xtreme]

I can see why, the AFL admin are just ensuring that Geelong will still see finals action despite sliding down to 10th in 2026.

Corrupt afl is corrupt.

 

[MarcMaverick]

We missed the finals in 2017 and 2020 and TBH, we wouldn't have done much in both years. Because of that we went to the PF in 2018 amd won in 2021.

 

[Dirty Bird]

For all you laughing at Adelaide going out in straight sets. You got what you deserve

 

[chickenonachain]

Is there any other sport in the world where the rules consistently get changed?

 

[Hollow Knight]

Former Collingwood and Carlton CEO Greg Swann is losing the plot a bit.

 

[Dirty Bird]

Is there any other sport in the world where the rules consistently get changed?

nfl

 

[heem]

The reaction just goes to show you that the fans know nothing. If the fans were in charge, they wouldn't want to change anything.

• There was opposition to the final-6 when it came in
• There was HUGE opposition to the final-8 when it came in (in the 15 team league in 1994)
• there was opposition to the national competition.
• there was opposition to non-Vic teams getting home finals. I remember Allan McAllister saying that all finals should be played in Victoria and he wasn't alone.
• there was opposition to teams moving out of their traditional home grounds
• there was massive opposition before the first ever night final between Essendon and Carlton in 1993.

etc etc

Virtually every move was opposed by the riff-raff, and every move was in retrospect the right thing to do. I notice the riff-raff is alive in well in here. The "leave-the-game-alone" crowd need to be ignored.

The fans don't like change, but they always come around to it eventually. It'll be the same when the GF is moved to night/twilight. The fans will whine and then get over it in 12 months time.

We had a final-8 in a 16 team league when 50% of the teams made the finals.

We will soon be at 19 teams, so 50% of 19 is 9.5 (rounded up to 10) so 10 is the right number. Keeps more teams involved, less dead -rubbers etc. Same proportion as 8 in the 16-team league.

My opposition is that it is the wrong type of final-10. Should have been a knockout version. But 10 is clearly the right number.

Agreed. So many change resistant negative people on here. Freakin riff raff.

But I would counsel to be bold and embrace a 9.5 team concept which could just as easily be brought in now. 9th and 10th should play in their respective wild card games with 18 players only and one of the 18 should only play in the first quarter. this means 17.25 player equivalent. Which is 0.75 of a 23 player team ergo adding up to a 9.5 team finals series.

Some will argue this would put 9th and 10th at a natural disadvantage but there’s the incentivisation to finish at least 8th right?

Like another positive the troglodyte faction can’t see is that it could also actually mean more goals for 7th and 8th in the wild card games. Which means more songs and fan engagement for them. In turn meaning every team will be craving 7th and 8th even more. It also opens up spicy new bet and same day multi markets.

I really love it. The innovation is so exciting. It’s just wild.

 

[damochandler]

The mid season cup will definitely come in next. Gimmick football league

 

[Demon13304]

Look, if a team can win 5 consecutive finals, they deserve the premiership. No one would have ever done it harder. Teams have made the finals with more losses than wins before.

When they did the 8/15 in 1994, it was for one year.

This will be for two years before it is 10/19.

It makes perfect sense. You simply can't add three teams and not change the finals structure.

You seem to be ignoring everyone's main point here: that we don't want more than half the league making finals. And no matter how you look at this, more than half the teams are making finals even when Tassie come in

Again even 9th would've been acceptable, 10th team coming in is just too generous

So to you it makes perfect sense, but not to a massive amount of fans that are not happy with this

 

[jmac70]

Former Collingwood, Carlton and Brisbane CEO Greg Swann is losing the plot a bit.

EFA

 

[janty]

lol.

 

[eastfreo75]

Forget 9th and 10th, this just makes it impossible for 7th and 8th to win the flag, if it wasn't already hard enough.

If it wasn't for the passion of the fans and fundamentals of the game, the league would go bankrupt in 6 months under this current administration.

Most likely gives 5 and 6 a better chance.

Having too many weeks off hurts touch.

 

[AndyD]

For all the talk that this is a money grab, is there any actual indication the AFL already have or will be selling the rights to these games, or are they just a goodwill throw in to their pals at 7/Fox?

 

[Blackhawk42]

The problem is that the season is so long. So for the last third of the season it is really boring with so many dead games. This decision absolutely makes sense to keep it interesting and they are never going to shorten the season.

The second last game of the season (which would have been the last game barring a freak weather incident), was a nailbiter where the difference between winning and losing was 3rd position and 8th position.

One side eventually won the flag.
The other came from 8th to make a preliminary final.

It was so even this year that every result involving the top 8 clubs for the final 6 weeks had the chance to swing everything massively in favour of some and against others.

If there was ever a year to justify NOT introducing a wildcard round, it was 2025.

It's a brain dead decision to being it in.

 

[Hawks1523]

I’m one more stupid decision away from being done with this league. This is the stupidest thing I’ve ever seen.

 

[Gavin Excell]

Agreed. So many change resistant negative people on here. Freakin riff raff.

But I would counsel to be bold and embrace a 9.5 team concept which could just as easily be brought in now. 9th and 10th should play in their respective wild card games with 18 players only and one of the 18 should only play in the first quarter. this means 17.25 player equivalent. Which is 0.75 of a 23 player team ergo adding up to a 9.5 team finals series.

Some will argue this would put 9th and 10th at a natural disadvantage but there’s the incentivisation to finish at least 8th right?

Like another positive the troglodyte faction can’t see is that it could also actually mean more goals for 7th and 8th in the wild card games. Which means more songs and fan engagement for them. In turn meaning every team will be craving 7th and 8th even more. It also opens up spicy new bet and same day multi markets.

I really love it. The innovation is so exciting. It’s just wild.

Thanks debutant*

* afl lackey

 

[CatToTheFuture]

What fresh hell is this?

 

[StillAtLarge]

YOU GET A FINALS SPOT, YOU GET A FINALS SPOT...
EVERYONE GETS A FINALS SPOT!

 

[Fabab]

afl hating itself to death sick of the rules constantly changing and they don't even know the rules they are going to make up for next seasons drafting.

 

[lizard man]

People might very well end up liking this

 

[Plugger35]

This move was always on the cards after the season we just had with only 9 teams a chance of playing finals for half the season.

I'm not thrilled with the idea but I don't hate it if it avoids a scenario like last season and gives us two finals on the bye weekend.

 

[carloss]

Looks like the AFL is suffering from a "competency crisis"

 

[Maddo11]

Sydney finished 10th and they were not even close to a finals team

Well I mean we did beat the eventual premiers at their home ground in the last month. We just had a terrible start to the season.. we weren't too far off being able to do some damage.

BUT

no team will ever win 5 finals games though so it's moot

 

[Dangerousfield]

There is not a single good reason to add the 9th and 10th finishing teams to the finals schedule EXCEPT $ for the AFL coffers.

This is all about AFL execs meeting their KPI's.

Only other winner I can see is Essendon who will have a chance, after 10k days or whatever it is now, to maybe win a final. I have noted that the handful of posters in favour of this bastardry are Essendon supporters!

Next cab off the rank will be a mid season trade period that of course heavily favours Vic clubs where players can change clubs without moving house, unlike clubs outside of Victoria.

AFL just mirroring the poo state of their Victorian 'home'

Nothing ceases to surprise me when it comes the the AFL executives decision making.