Calculating the perfect fixture

[Shinboner Schem]

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/afl/cal...-is-no-easy-task/story-fn7shx05-1226500274157

Big numbers and a lot to compute.

That's where Rick Stone and his Canadian-based software firm Optimal Planning Solutions come to the rescue.

"The AFL, with the use of our software, has built a scoring system that will give penalties for undesirable things," Stone says.

"So you might have situations where a club has back-to-back long travels, or multiple road games in a row ... or fixtures on specific TV networks that aren't as appealing as others."

The end result is the best possible result - because there's simply no such thing as a perfect draw in the AFL.

In your opinion, what should the AFL turning up/down the "penalty points" for?

I reckon they should turn up the penalties for Easter Sunday and Mother's Day.

 

[Scotland]

Any system that doesn't involve the number of spanners in a Sidchrome took kit is flawed.

 

[Harris Specter]

Collingwood travelling.

 

[worthy]

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/afl/cal...-is-no-easy-task/story-fn7shx05-1226500274157



In your opinion, what should the AFL turning up/down the "penalty points" for?

I reckon they should turn up the penalties for Easter Sunday and Mother's Day.

It depends on which "perfect" fixture your talking about.

1. The perfect broadcast fixture.
2. The perfect even fixture.
3. The perfect AFL fixture (crowd numbers)

 

[____]

The perfect fixture would have everyone playing each other twice, one home and one away.

 

[Cmarsh]

This is crap. It's just so simple. Just make every team play each other twice to get an even draw.

 

[greatwhiteshark]

They are trying to make us understand just how hard it is to do the fixture and for us all to back off and accept it better.

But the fixture is not difficult at all, they have made it difficult themselves because they put all of these parameters in.

Take them out and a better and fairer fixture is not hard at all. Football fixtures should have zero parameters in them.
But they like to sell to us it is hard because we have to have them.

Just another load of crap from the AFL.

 

[theduckfan]

This is crap. It's just so simple. Just make every team play each other twice to get an even draw.

This, expand team sizes and raise salary cap. Would enable clubs to rest players to get them through a longer season.

 

[Shinboner Schem]

It depends on which "perfect" fixture your talking about.

1. The perfect broadcast fixture.
2. The perfect even fixture.
3. The perfect AFL fixture (crowd numbers)

I'm not talking perfect at all (that was just the article title).

Given the contractual agreements are what they are, things aren't going to change much.

But if you were able to alter some of the parameters used by this software tool, what tweaks would you make to what does or does not get penalty points in its scoring system?

 

[Colonial]

This is crap. It's just so simple. Just make every team play each other twice to get an even draw.

Or play each other once and swap the home grounds the following year.. Still an even draw.

 

[SJ]

This is crap. It's just so simple. Just make every team play each other twice to get an even draw.

Yeah 34 matches, plus four weeks of finals, gives us a 38 week season (without any byes). We'll start in mid-February and finish in mid-November.

Can't see how that'll cause any dramas.

 

[Colonial]

Yeah 34 matches, plus four weeks of finals, gives us a 38 week season (without any byes). We'll start in mid-February and finish in mid-November.

Can't see how that'll cause any dramas.

Might be a bit warm in the begining and the end... Can nickname the season Survivor.

 

[Nasty Penguin]

 

[shintemaster]

They are trying to make us understand just how hard it is to do the fixture and for us all to back off and accept it better.

But the fixture is not difficult at all, they have made it difficult themselves because they put all of these parameters in.

Take them out and a better and fairer fixture is not hard at all. Football fixtures should have zero parameters in them.
But they like to sell to us it is hard because we have to have them.

Just another load of crap from the AFL.

Nah.

Don’t you know that the fixture is only like that because those pesky clubs keep putting in requests. It’s got nothing at all to do with the AFL who would dearly love to have an even fixture that gives every team an equal opportunity to perform.

 

[HappyChappy35]

A 34-round season with teams playing one another twice will never work. Many grounds (such as the MCG, SCG, Gabba, Adelaide Oval from 2014, and Manuka) cannot be used in February/November due to cricket. Whilst there are many ways in which the AFL could improve the fixture, I honestly don't see any problems with a 22-round season.
Having said that, creating a fixture is not actually as difficult as many people seem to think. Heck, I was even able to make one myself without using any software.

 

[greatwhiteshark]

Nah.

Don’t you know that the fixture is only like that because those pesky clubs keep putting in requests. It’s got nothing at all to do with the AFL who would dearly love to have an even fixture that gives every team an equal opportunity to perform.

If the AFL were a professional business then they would not even ask the clubs what they want in their fixture, fixture requests are only a modern thing, it never happened 20 years ago. You played where you were fixtured.
The AFL do not want a fair fixture, they have admitted they don't. They want a fixture to raise revenue.

It has all to do with the AFL, those pesky clubs as you put it only have a say because the AFL allow them to have a say.
All clubs should sit there and wait for the fixture to come out as they did for 100 years, they should have no opinion on it, no say in it, no requests in it.

 

[telsor]

If the AFL were a professional business then they would not even ask the clubs what they want in their fixture, fixture requests are only a modern thing, it never happened 20 years ago. You played where you were fixtured.
The AFL do not want a fair fixture, they have admitted they don't. They want a fixture to raise revenue.

It has all to do with the AFL, those pesky clubs as you put it only have a say because the AFL allow them to have a say.
All clubs should sit there and wait for the fixture to come out as they did for 100 years, they should have no opinion on it, no say in it, no requests in it.

20 years ago, they didn't need to ask clubs for preferences, as they all played each other, and there were few timeslots.

As the variations increased, the input for preferences increased.


I assume your preference for a fair (random?) fixture, that you wouldn't mind if WCE only played Freo once, and if luck was against you, you had back to back Hobart/Brisbane/Launceston/GC games and all games were on foxtel and played sunday twilight.

 

[THRILLHO]

This is just a straight up fluff piece designed by the AFL to assauge those who complain about the unequal fixture. No mention of the fact that it's the AFL's insatiable desire to prop up ratings and attendance figures by overexposing the big teams (a short-term strategy if I've ever seen one) so they can line their own pockets because they've hit the revenue targets that they themselves put in place.

It's like me making a bet with my little cousin on who can eat the most donuts, and then just holding the donuts over my head out of his reach. Good job THRILLHO!

Herald Sun strikes again with the quality journalism. A real opportunity to highlight to the general public just how unequal the draw is. Instead they just parrot the AFL line. And yet, they'll still have the temerity to complain when the AFL eventually cuts them out as the middle man and just has their own media arm.

 

[greatwhiteshark]

20 years ago, they didn't need to ask clubs for preferences, as they all played each other, and there were few timeslots.

As the variations increased, the input for preferences increased.


I assume your preference for a fair (random?) fixture, that you wouldn't mind if WCE only played Freo once, and if luck was against you, you had back to back Hobart/Brisbane/Launceston/GC games and all games were on foxtel and played sunday twilight.

Actually Telsor I could not care less about playing freo twice, we don't get bigger crowds cause we play Freo, there is no advantage for the club in anyway shape or form to play freo twice. Playing Freo twice I don't think people give two hoots about over here, they would much prefer a concurrent fixture that is fairer for all than these manufactured games.

By random fixture it should be a concurrent fixture and it runs in a circle forever and a day until another side joins the league. Not rocket science and there is not one ounce of proof it would deliver less income or smaller crowds so you cannot say it would.

 

[telsor]

Actually Telsor I could not care less about playing freo twice, we don't get bigger crowds cause we play Freo, there is no advantage for the club in anyway shape or form to play freo twice. Playing Freo twice I don't think people give two hoots about over here, they would much prefer a concurrent fixture that is fairer for all than these manufactured games.

By random fixture it should be a concurrent fixture and it runs in a circle forever and a day until another side joins the league. Not rocket science and there is not one ounce of proof it would deliver less income or smaller crowds so you cannot say it would.

I'd back that.

Sorry for assuming, but your opinion isn't the common one I hear here.

 

[AM]

The perfect fixture would have everyone playing each other twice, one home and one away.

You have a point. The only fair draw is for each team to play each other. Once would be preferable but the AFL wouldn't cop that for financial reasons. Twice, with the number of teams we have going around, would make for a long season even if it were to replace the NAB Cup. So we're going to have to continue with a fix rather than a draw.

 

[greatwhiteshark]

Can anyone prove that running a concurrent fixture would draw less people to games and deliver less money to the AFL? Other than here say!!!!

One would think it would be worth the experiment over a 3 year period if they were interested at all in gaining some integrity and balance into the fixture.

 

[THRILLHO]

A seventeen round draw would be the goal. I could even live with an 18 round draw with one return fixture. Everyone would point to the potential lose of revenue the AFL would suffer, but that's only a short-term hit for a potential long-term major payoff.

Look at the NFL. Every game matters. Every game is huge and there's a real sense of "I can't miss this" simply because every game has ramifications. With a 24 round season, games get lost in the shuffle as people get into the mentality of "there's always next week." That just doesn't exist in the NFL.

Of course, the AFL would never do this as they would have to accept a $1.2bn or less in the next TV rights and they treat that as a massive pissing contest with the NRL.

 

[Old Spice]

It's a bloody hard task to even it out.

Some supporters say they want a big gate from the big games and play the Pies, then another supporter from the same club will say they are disadvantaged by playing a top side twice.

It's easy to attack it, but I'd be interested to see what people put up as an ideal draw for 2013. I'm 100% certain that one persons proposal would be lucky to get near 50% support.

 

[Stamos]

18 rounds.
9 home and 9 away.
Play every body once + a rivalry round.
Vic teams travel to each state once.
Other clubs travel to each other state once and Victoria (or stand in venue eg Tassie) 5 times.
Alternates each year.