The AFL has got junior rules wrong!

[Covertackle]

up until u12s kids below that age play about 40mins of footy. the field is about 60m long. the field is broken into 3 zones, and generally has 8 boys (4 from each team) in each zone.

that equates to an average of the ball being in each zone for 13 minutes per game, to be shared by 8 kids.

no tackling is allowed. in u9s they can grab a gurnsey and letgo straight away and the ump counts to 3 by which time the player in possession must promote the ball.

a play in possession can only bounce the ball once, and a player must not travel intoanother zone.

comparitively, in Rugby League, at the same age groups, the field for u9s is 75m, it is 60m for u6s to u8s. full tackle rules apply from u6s. no zones are present.

so i RL a boy can run full field with the ball, and tackle when the opposition has the ball. it is a 40 minute game and a boy or girl can be involved for the full 40 minutes. each child averages 7-9 runs with the ball, and makes as many tackles as he or she wants.

so as a parent, i must get my boy to an AFL game for 13 minutes of footy. or i can take my child to RL and get the full 40 minutes of footy.

as per value for money, value for fun and entertainment, RL wins hands down. AFL kids play 'karate' while the ball isnt in their zone. often they need to be yelled at to be told the ball is in their zone as they are distracted by playing amongst themselves. that NEVER happens in RL.

in my opinion, if you MUST have zones, it should be 2 zones down the middle. half a field, so a player can run or follow the game all game.

however, the AFL, unlike other structured sports dont seem to trust their kids to hold possition. kids prove they can in soccer, RL, basketball etc.

the AFL have got it wrong.

 

[ManInWhite]

In those sports the players basically use the whole ground to an extent. In AFL they don't. So I don't quite understand your point.

 

[Brown Bottle]

Perhaps the QAFL thinks kids in AFL need to learn about positions. I can tell you that none of what you have detailed is true in Victoria, although rules do vary somewhat across associations. Our U9's (Tackers) often play on a full sized ground, and there are no zones. The game is normally an absolute cluster****, even though coaches are permitted on the ground. Most kids DO follow the ball, and take great pride in telling everyone that they kicked a goal while playing in a back pocket. I sort of like the notion of zones...

 

[Covertackle]

. I sort of like the notion of zones...

petition for them then.....

our kids are at a disadvantage unless they play as RLs well.

ive been told about 5 stories now. i rang the AFL in VIC and they said the rules were the same throughout the nation....and you are saying they arent?

 

[Brown Bottle]

poetition for them then.....

our kids are at a disadvantage unless they play RLs well.

ive been told about 5 stories now. i rang the AFL in VIC and they said the rules were the same throughout the nation....and you are saying they arent?

If you're talking about the Auskick program then that's different to juniors, and the kids might be required to play in zones. I can tell you that the average game of Tackers in Victoria has about 34 kids within 20m of the ball for the entire game. There are exceptions - there are coaches who do what's encouraged like rotating players through all positions, and sending kids back to those positions, but they are very much in the minority. Umpires in Tackers are normally parents, and they are usually completely oblivious to any modified rules as well so the game just rolls along with all of the kids following the ball.

 

[Covertackle]

If you're talking about the Auskick program then that's different to juniors, and the kids might be required to play in zones. I can tell you that the average game of Tackers in Victoria has about 34 kids within 20m of the ball for the entire game. There are exceptions - there are coaches who do what's encouraged like rotating players through all positions, and sending kids back to those positions, but they are very much in the minority. Umpires in Tackers are normally parents, and they are usually completely oblivious to any modified rules as well so the game just rolls along with all of the kids following the ball.

im talking weekend footy. 13 minutes per zone per 8 kids in QLD. right up till u11s. does that suck or what? some kids travel 200km for that crap!

 

[Brown Bottle]

im talking weekend footy. 13 minutes per zone per 8 kids in QLD. right up till u11s. does that suck or what? some kids travel 200km for that crap!

They do that with the younger kids at Auskick, which caters for kids up to a similar age here. But Auskick runs (for example, at our club) on Saturday mornings, and then the kids who are ready to play Footy join the JFC and play on Sunday mornings in proper matches. Some kids do both for a while, as Auskick can be quite good for a focus on skills development. I guess up in QLD there aren't too many Junior Footy Clubs so you're copping an AFL run Auskick program (even if it's not badged as such).

 

[Covertackle]

no proper matches here

They do that with the younger kids at Auskick, which caters for kids up to a similar age here. But Auskick runs (for example, at our club) on Saturday mornings, and then the kids who are ready to play Footy join the JFC and play on Sunday mornings in proper matches. Some kids do both for a while, as Auskick can be quite good for a focus on skills development. I guess up in QLD there aren't too many Junior Footy Clubs so you're copping an AFL run Auskick program (even if it's not badged as such).

until u12s. all footy before that in QLD is no tackle with 3 zones. i dont care how its wrapped. one game per week. zones everywhere, no tackle, it fully sucks. no sunday footy.

 

[Brown Bottle]

no proper matches here



until u12s. all footy before that in QLD is no tackle with 3 zones. i dont care how its wrapped. one game per week. zones everywhere, no tackle, it fully sucks. no sunday footy.

You need to start up a footy club mate. The AFL will probably bankroll it!

 

[Covertackle]

You need to start up a footy club mate. The AFL will probably bankroll it!

no. they will impose restrictions on us queenslanders that arent applied to victorians.....

in a state that prides itself on tackling, we arent allowed to have our kids do, what we do better than you....

 

[melbournemartin]

An interesting point. That's definitely not how I remember my Auskick, but that was a while back.

When you say there is full tackling at U6, how "full" do you mean?

 

[Covertackle]

An interesting point. That's definitely not how I remember my Auskick, but that was a while back.

When you say there is full tackling at U6, how "full" do you mean?

from in RL u6s, you can tackle legally just as in the NRL....ive never seen anything other than a few tears as a onsequence, and a whole heap more fun because of it. it bothers me because im trying to steer my boy to AFL, but the AFL has taken so much fun out of it, he now loves RL as he can use his full skill set. he doesnt even want to play AFL next season.

he's u9 next year, and i dont think i can get him to have a go at AFL till its full rules. ive bought about ten guernseys forhim, taken him to see the suns and lions, hes even played AFL on the GABBA!! but hed still rather play RL. its the AFLs fault! the older he gets, the harder it will be to get him to switch codes as he is successfull in league. he tops the tackle count, scored over 50 tries this season, and won best and fairest for the two seasons he has played. he now loves the game. im pissed off. all the effort i put in to convert him, and it has been the restrictions of the AFL that have lost him to RL.

 

[ManInWhite]

You've possibly answered your own question.... "he now loves RL as he can use his full skill set"...

At the risk of generalising, tackling in RL is a key skill and if the kids didn't do it, the other team would just run with the ball all day. In AFL emphasis is on the kicking and marking - without tackling the game still goes on. If they did concentrate on tackling I suspect you'd find the game would be a non-stop succession of ballups.

 

[Covertackle]

You've possibly answered your own question.... "he now loves RL as he can use his full skill set"...

At the risk of generalising, tackling in RL is a key skill and if the kids didn't do it, the other team would just run with the ball all day. In AFL emphasis is on the kicking and marking - without tackling the game still goes on. If they did concentrate on tackling I suspect you'd find the game would be a non-stop succession of ballups.

but why is it allowed in vic., like an above poster suggested, but it isnt allowed for qld boys?

 

[melbournemartin]

but why is it allowed in vic., like an above poster suggested, but it isnt allowed for qld boys?

I can't recall any tackling in under 6s. If you look at the half-time games only the older players in the middle tackle and even they are pretty light.

 

[Slax]

no proper matches here



until u12s. all footy before that in QLD is no tackle with 3 zones. i dont care how its wrapped. one game per week. zones everywhere, no tackle, it fully sucks. no sunday footy.

You fail to understand that the QAFL is actually run by the FFA and ARL who want to make it us frustrating as possible for kids to play Aussie Rules and thus take up a different sport.

 

[Covertackle]

You fail to understand that the QAFL is actually run by the FFA and ARL who want to make it us frustrating as possible for kids to play Aussie Rules and thus take up a different sport.

i can see how you got a mods job....

 

[Slax]

Seriously though I'm willing to bet it ha a lot to do with insurance premiums and the worry of being sued because of a serious injury.

 

[Covertackle]

RL all over australia, nz, england, etc, play full tackle from 6yo. no zones. socer trusts its kids, so does basketball, both simmilarly tactical games. why QLD AFL is so 'nancy' one can only wonder. i know its lost my boy, despite all the effort i went through to try and steer him that way. its the zones and non tackle that take the fun out of it. VIC do it, but QLD cant.....thats just total bullshit.

 

[mike14]

I enrolled the youngster in Auskick the season just gone and he was doing tackling drills on the first day (which was hilarious). We hung around to watch the juniors play after it was all over a few times (no idea what age group but I'd guess u10 or u12) and there was a fair bit of tackling going on.

That was all in the 'burbs just Nth of Brisbane

 

[Covertackle]

I enrolled the youngster in Auskick the season just gone and he was doing tackling drills on the first day (which was hilarious). We hung around to watch the juniors play after it was all over a few times (no idea what age group but I'd guess u10 or u12) and there was a fair bit of tackling going on.

That was all in the 'burbs just Nth of Brisbane

and they had a ton of fun an no one got hurt.

ive watched and played jr rugby league for 20 years and never witnessed worse than a few tears, or a bump that rerquired a bit of consolation on the sideline....then back out there again..we know the AFL turn a blind eye towards it in victoria, why are they so strict on the qld kids? they scared we're gunna kick their ass in an origin game in 15 years? im serious!! 18 QLD AFL players with the tackling skills of anELITE NRL player amoungst their other skills, are going to create carnage on a pussy victorian side....

 

[Nesqua]

Different leagues have different rules which are modified from the AFL, your league obviously has stricter rules in regards to tackling, etc than some other leagues. This is not the AFL screwing Qld etc, rather they hand down their recommendations and each league adopts/modifies them to suit. Some leagues have zones for u8 and 9's and then zones removed for u10 upwards. Some use less of the oval for younger ages, some have 15 a side, all depends on where your child plays.