Gold Coast and GWS has failed

[Coolangatta]

Just to elaborate on what that'd look like at 26 hypothetical teams (this is why expansion should take geography into account)

VIC 10
SOUTH-WEST 3 WA 2 SA (5)
NORTHERN 4 QLD 1 NT (5)
EASTERN 3 NSW 1 ACT 1 TAS 1 NZ (6)

Vic conference plays each other once, the other conferences play twice (unless they reach 7 teams but probably never). Then you play as many teams from other conferences once as possible (and play everyone else every second or third year if necessary).

23 home and away games per year (rotate Gather Round throughout the interstates plus the Top End).

Top 10 finals system with four playoffs (10 v 11, 9 v 12, 8 v 13, 7 v 14). Extra wildcards if a conference winner finishes below 14th in the final ladder.

 

[Corn Cobbers]

I wouldn't say stupid, but certainly have a bit of tunnel vision, being that they primarily only really care about how their club is going, and in one sense, that is understandable.

As for greater than 20 clubs, really, 18 already seems like a lot - it's really hard to envision a comp with more than 20 teams, and trying to keep track of up to 12 games per round.

And please don't try and tell me that geographic conferences is the solution (with 85% of the population living on the East side of the continent...oh, we'll put Geelong in the Western conference because they are 60km west of Melbourne, and North Melbourne goes in the Northern confernece, because, well, they have North in their name, etc. etc.)

I would actually say stupid, as a population we are definitely de-evolving, check the TV guide if you don't believe me, our brains are shrinking and life expectancy decreasing.

 

[Walshawk]

Just to elaborate on what that'd look like at 26 hypothetical teams (this is why expansion should take geography into account)

VIC 10
SOUTH-WEST 3 WA 2 SA (5)
NORTHERN 4 QLD 1 NT (5)
EASTERN 3 NSW 1 ACT 1 TAS 1 NZ (6)

Vic conference plays each other once, the other conferences play twice (unless they reach 7 teams but probably never). Then you play as many teams from other conferences once as possible (and play everyone else every second or third year if necessary).

23 home and away games per year (rotate Gather Round throughout the interstates plus the Top End).

Top 10 finals system with four playoffs (10 v 11, 9 v 12, 8 v 13, 7 v 14). Extra wildcards if a conference winner finishes below 14th in the final ladder.

What a mess. You can’t have conferences with such a disparity in size. The whole point of conferences is to even things out. This makes everything worse.

 

[Coolangatta]

What a mess. You can’t have conferences with such a disparity in size. The whole point of conferences is to even things out. This makes everything worse.

Yeah, you’re right, that is messy. I would prefer (if the AFL does expand beyond 20 in the future and I already know your thoughts on this) that they keep it to 22-24 teams max and keep a single tier league.