Opinion Is this the worst AFL season ever?

[janty]

Have been way too many Sundays this season where none of the 3 games have been interesting unless your own team is playing.

 

[Randomizor]

In terms of fixturing? Yes absolutely awful. Essendon and Carlton shouldn’t play another prime time game until they actually earn it.

In terms of everything else? Nah been a cracking season

 

[RonnieRaven]

If you only watch free to air games you’d think so.

 

[Forum_Leader]

Outside of 2020, this is the worst season of AFL I have ever watched.

Teams getting smashed, Geelong having an easy draw and the gap between top 4 and bottom 4

Cannot think of a worst AFL season than this year and it will be if we see Geelong dominate with a premiership, Coleman and Brownlow in one season.

Yes agree, i only mentioned this at home to the family last week in fact. Very one sided season, blow outs and boring style of footy the majority of the time.

 

[banzai]

Is the most ridiculous thread ever?

Top 8 is stacked and anything can happen.
Bottom 9 teams are useless but they're not impacting finals either way so what does it matter.

Clueless

Because usually atleast 7 games a week involve those bottom 9 teams and they are useless as you say. Then many of the matchups between top teams that have been hyped up have been pretty awful as well. In the last few weeks Dogs v GWS, GC v Bris, Pies v Lions, Hawks v Pies.

So in the last month Adelaide v Hawthorn has really been the only good game between 2 teams that matter this season.

 

[ray_purchase]

Very boring season. The AFL was destroyed by that ****head Gillon Mclachlan ... and now Andrew Dillon and Laura Kane are making it even worse instead of having the guts to fix everything that needs to be fixed.

 

[Tim Wickets]

If you whant less players have less teams. Hawthorn should have moved to Tassie with Malbourne and North Melbourne Merging. Richmond and Essendon could also merge but that could be overkill. There you have a 16 team comp and have about 60 less players.

 

[Cyber_punk]

The bottom 8 teams are awful, can't remember seeing so many bad teams in 1 season.

 

[Corkintheocean]

Is the most ridiculous thread ever?

Top 8 is stacked and anything can happen.
Bottom 9 teams are useless but they're not impacting finals either way so what does it matter.

Clueless

The top 8 is made up by three pretenders who are somehow still significantly better than the bottom nine rabble. Freo, Gold Coast, Collingwood are all shot.

 

[EaglesOz]

Its just a whole lot of things contributing to a lack of excitement. Its stopped being about the game and its about agendas, the AFL's or anyone elses.

• Umpiring inconsitencies and agendas. This has to be the worst league in the professional sports world for knowing what the rules are and having them consistently umpired.
• Commentator unprofessionalism and cheering. Can't beleive the standards that they are held to, its cringeworthy.
• Draft inequalities / rorting. All in the name of the AFL agenda for GCS and GSW. I don't mind it to a point, but its gone too far and they have unleashed something they now can't control.
• No Saturday games, pushing for pay tv. I don't want pay TV, not because i can't afford it as i can, but because the game can't grow if those that can't afford it can't watch it, or those that are only mildly interested won't pay to grow that passion. Its short sighted and greedy.
• Eagles game almost exclusively on Sundays, because of the no Saturday games on TV but WA games must be live so push theme to the dead Sunday timeslot. Alienates one of the largest supporter bases in the game.
• Footy shows as fronts for gambling companies
• The players insisting on the salary cap floor. Make it a rolling floor and no problem, but this way, the eagles list being paid the same as the Brisbane one?
• The players association keeping the list size small for their benefit (its the highly paid players that are the represenatives). Handicaps rebuilding teams for the same of extra $$ in the pocket of the few.
• The wheel of suspensions. What a joke the tribunal has been for 20 years, and just gets worse
• Every round under the sun. As a foreigner, who cares about foreigner round, or every other agenda out there. As a father with a daugther playing football, who cares about womens/mothers or fathers round. I just want to watch a great game.
  • Soon there will be a carbon neutral round im sure, where everyone plays at home and the supporters can't attend the game unless its within their 15min city radius and you have your digital ID to present.
• The bye's. Split it over 2 rounds, don't make the average fan have to think. The need to be in in the news cycle 24/7 can be counterproductive. Sometimes less is more. That includes less teams. I think 16 was optimal, pushing 20 is just dumb.

This is an incredibly boring season. Eagles wise, its actually been OK despite the results, because for the first time in 5 years we are seeing growth and changes in areas we have wanted to for ages. It's not the eagles games, its that the rest of the games are just deflating. Which way will the free kick go, which team has the AFL decided needs a leg up this week, which rule is being umpired differently just for this one game in this one round, which gambling ad is next, which DEI agenda is it about this week, which commentators will go to the nth degree to explain why their team should have got that free kick while ignoring an opposing players head almost being ripped off and having a giggle. Is that a 4 week suspension against us, or a free kick for us? Nobody knows.

All of these things add up to a gradual passion drain, which may be too slow to to see but when the numbers start to snowball in 10 years it may take decades to reverse it. Never been less interested in AFL outside of the WCE.

 

[daniel_4tw]

I think this season has been great.

 

[demondavey]

Outside of 2020, this is the worst season of AFL I have ever watched.

Teams getting smashed, Geelong having an easy draw and the gap between top 4 and bottom 4

Cannot think of a worst AFL season than this year and it will be if we see Geelong dominate with a premiership, Coleman and Brownlow in one season.

17 Melbourne games for Collingwood. Definitely the worst season I’ve seen.

 

[Rusty Brookes]

I think this season has been great.

Yeah, there's a pattern in the responses. Supporters of the bottom nine sides hate it, supporters of the top nine enjoying it. While the spectacle hasn't been great at times, to come down to the last round and have still so many permutations of the final eight on the table has been high drama. I genuinely feel any of the top eight are a chance to win the whole thing.

 

[Jibroni]

Its just a whole lot of things contributing to a lack of excitement. Its stopped being about the game and its about agendas, the AFL's or anyone elses.

• Umpiring inconsitencies and agendas. This has to be the worst league in the professional sports world for knowing what the rules are and having them consistently umpired.
• Commentator unprofessionalism and cheering. Can't beleive the standards that they are held to, its cringeworthy.
• Draft inequalities / rorting. All in the name of the AFL agenda for GCS and GSW. I don't mind it to a point, but its gone too far and they have unleashed something they now can't control.
• No Saturday games, pushing for pay tv. I don't want pay TV, not because i can't afford it as i can, but because the game can't grow if those that can't afford it can't watch it, or those that are only mildly interested won't pay to grow that passion. Its short sighted and greedy.
• Eagles game almost exclusively on Sundays, because of the no Saturday games on TV but WA games must be live so push theme to the dead Sunday timeslot. Alienates one of the largest supporter bases in the game.
• Footy shows as fronts for gambling companies
• The players insisting on the salary cap floor. Make it a rolling floor and no problem, but this way, the eagles list being paid the same as the Brisbane one?
• The players association keeping the list size small for their benefit (its the highly paid players that are the represenatives). Handicaps rebuilding teams for the same of extra $$ in the pocket of the few.
• The wheel of suspensions. What a joke the tribunal has been for 20 years, and just gets worse
• Every round under the sun. As a foreigner, who cares about foreigner round, or every other agenda out there. As a father with a daugther playing football, who cares about womens/mothers or fathers round. I just want to watch a great game.
  • Soon there will be a carbon neutral round im sure, where everyone plays at home and the supporters can't attend the game unless its within their 15min city radius and you have your digital ID to present.
• The bye's. Split it over 2 rounds, don't make the average fan have to think. The need to be in in the news cycle 24/7 can be counterproductive. Sometimes less is more. That includes less teams. I think 16 was optimal, pushing 20 is just dumb.

I agree with pretty much all of your points (except the WC one).

Apart from the rise of Adelaide there is literally nothing about this season I have found fascinating.

The game is no longer about the fans as going to the footy should be your opportunity to forget about life and enjoy watching your team compete. It's not what is used to be.

 

[GhostofJimJess]

Yeah, there's a pattern in the responses. Supporters of the bottom nine sides hate it, supporters of the top nine enjoying it. While the spectacle hasn't been great at times, to come down to the last round and have still so many permutations of the final eight on the table has been high drama. I genuinely feel any of the top eight are a chance to win the whole thing.

The Hawks are the really fun team to watch from an impartial pov. Them and Brisbane play the most exciting brand of footy - it would make for a great grand final if they both somehow wound up there.

 

[BigVic]

Too many blowouts and Geelong winning a flag, Bailey Smith

3

Bailey Smith

Age

24

Ht

185cm

Wt

86kg

Pos.

M/F

Career

Season

Last 5

D

18.3

5star

K

8.5

3star

HB

9.8

5star

M

2.3

2star

T

3.8

5star

CL

2.7

4star

D

19.8

5star

K

9.6

4star

HB

10.2

5star

M

1.8

2star

T

3.2

4star

CL

3.2

4star

D

14.8

4star

K

7.6

3star

HB

7.2

5star

M

2.0

3star

T

3.4

5star

CL

1.6

4star

a Brownlow Medalist and Jeremy Cameron

5

Jeremy Cameron

Age

32

Ht

196cm

Wt

94kg

Pos.

Fwd

Career

Season

Last 5

D

12.5

3star

K

9.0

3star

HB

3.4

3star

M

5.4

5star

T

1.6

4star

G

2.6

5star

D

10.0

3star

K

7.1

3star

HB

2.9

2star

M

4.6

4star

T

2.0

3star

G

1.9

5star

D

8.2

2star

K

5.0

2star

HB

3.2

3star

M

4.6

5star

T

2.4

4star

G

2.0

5star

a Coleman Medalist

Someone save this season and the nightmare I am dreading to happen

 

[Hobbes]

The top 8 is made up by three pretenders who are somehow still significantly better than the bottom nine rabble. Freo, Gold Coast, Collingwood are all shot.

Gold Coast had one bad game. It's a bit early to judge. They're still a good chance for top four.

 

[BigVic]

Underwhelming season now with the Rankine news

Please anyone but Geelong for the flag. I cannot bear Dangerfield as a premiership captain

 

[Sully111]

Yes it is

Some awful games. Umpiring is dreadful. Afl media are completely unbearable. As a saints fan the whole Nas contract thing dragging out. The icing on the cake is the AFL is an incredibly poorly run sporting organisation.

Can't wait for this season to be over.

 

[Chronz]

Underwhelming season now with the Rankine news

Please anyone but Geelong for the flag. I cannot bear Dangerfield as a premiership captain

Calm down BigVic. We've all had those nightmares where Geelong win the Premiership. But remember, they're only dreams.

 

[BomberManU]

Easy to say it's a bad season when you're team's struggling, but I enjoy watching any game, any team/s. But this season has been bad, even for that. Sundays have been about as uninteresting as you can get, Thursday night just doesn't work IMO and the double ups...why? You can't have a blockbuster every Friday night, but come on, have to do better than Ess/Carl seemingly every week.
There are always dud games as you approach finals and a lot of teams have nothing to play for, but it just feels worse this year.
The bye set up is crazy. The paranoia about not leaving some time free in case the NRL 'take over' is delusional.
TV coverage I'm reasonably happy with though. Haven't watched one game on FTA, which has been great. I quite like most of the Fox commentators and don't have to put up with the 'cast of thousands' approach that Ch 7 take. No FTA on a Saturday though is a slap in the face to the supporters.
I gave up on all AFL related shows a few years ago, so can't comment on them.

 

[swingdog]

I agree with pretty much all of your points (except the WC one).

Apart from the rise of Adelaide there is literally nothing about this season I have found fascinating.

The game is no longer about the fans as going to the footy should be your opportunity to forget about life and enjoy watching your team compete. It's not what is used to be.

The problem the AFL doesn’t understand is that having a shit product like we’ve seen this year, is that there are so many other forms of entertainment that people can switch to instead.

The AFL sees rugby league as its competition. It’s not. We live in a global sporting environment and there are better things to watch. That’s before you even get into non-sporting alternatives, such as gaming etc.

 

[Billy ray]

Apart from the rise of Adelaide there is literally nothing about this season I have found fascinating.

SUNS?

 

[Seeds]

Outside of 2020, this is the worst season of AFL I have ever watched.

Teams getting smashed, Geelong having an easy draw and the gap between top 4 and bottom 4

Cannot think of a worst AFL season than this year and it will be if we see Geelong dominate with a premiership, Coleman and Brownlow in one season.

Geelong has not had an easy draw ffs. The only teams we are losing against are the teams we have played twice. 10-1 win loss ratio against the hard teams we have apparently managed to avoid with an easy draw.

And even if we did have an easy draw then so what? Numerous teams have easy draws every year. How the hell would geelong getting an easy draw for once (we almost always have one of the toughest draws due to finishing top 6 every season) even register as a factor in whether a season was the worst afl season?

Ps. The irony of complaining about geelongs draw when you got an away game against us in your home city in front of your home crowd just boggles the mind.


Only conclusion is this is a troll thread.

 

[BigVic]

Yes it is

Some awful games. Umpiring is dreadful. Afl media are completely unbearable. As a saints fan the whole Nas contract thing dragging out. The icing on the cake is the AFL is an incredibly poorly run sporting organisation.

Can't wait for this season to be over.

Same here. Lost interest in the past month with so many blowouts and unwatchable games. 3 blowouts on Sunday with only one team can win the flag.

Next they'll replace Snoop Dogg with Coldplay and Birds of Tokyo for the entertainment which will be the most boring AFL Grand Final entertainment in history. Golden Rose Day will be more fun than the AFL Grand Final this year