Footy to Return | PUNT ROAD END | Richmond Tigers Forum
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Footy to Return

Not really, every flag has it's knockers like last year with the never leave the MCG rubbish.

No crowds, shorter quarters, games played in hubs, rule changes, interchange modifications, played into the summer months... seems quite a bit different to me.
 
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I'd argue a 17 game season is the purest flag we will ever see, no-one will improve their position due to having extra games against weak sides.

Not necessarily - in can largely depend on who a team plays at home
For example - we could get 8 home games against the worst eight sides and 9 away against the rest which means our closest rivals
Another team - say Collingwood - might get 9 home games including all the games against tough teams and only 8 away and they’re all the weak teams they’d beat anywhere
Extreme scenarios sure - but it could still be a contrived fixture
 
I understand the desire, and financial need, to resume the season, but it is looking farcical at this stage.

Shortening the game and reducing list sizes is something the AFL want to slip through and we should be vigilant about trying to stop them. Why do they want to change the game every second minute? It seems to be quite popular as it is.

The smaller lists will mean no reserves/VFL. So you won't have fringe players who are experienced in the game plan. If having unaffiliated state league sides is such a good idea how come West Coast just created a WAFL team a year or two ago? For no apparent reason I suppose.

As Tigers of Old said, we are in a state of emergency, this season might just be a write off.

The idea of a 20 week hub is patently absurd. Put them all in a hub for that long and watch the virus come in and wreak havoc. The hub idea has so many flaws, did people not read that Sports Illustrated article that was linked here? What happens if someone in the hub gets infected and has permanent health issues, or a member of their family gets sick or even dies. Do they sue the AFL?

Not a fan of the hub idea at all. Hopefully the state of emergency is lifted soon and the restrictions are lessened. Then a shortened season running later than usual would still be possible with full length games. Start in June, 16 more rounds, finals in October (ok, maybe Grand Final in November, don't want to give Collingwood the prospect of an October GF!).

DS
Disagree with much of this David. This is an entirely unique situation and entirely different solutions have to be found.
It is also the case that the impact of this pandemic is going to get a lot worse as it hits Africa and South America, with large populations in India and Indonesia also impacted, to a much much greater degree than now.
I hate the idea that our game is to be changed but there is a certain inevitability about that given our reliance on the income from broadcast rights and as I see it the sooner the AFL gets on with securing that income and signing a contract, the safer the future of the game will be.
Hate hitting the alarm button, but if you want to imagine the worst case just think of a new waive of infection sweeping through the US and it’s impact on US sports, all of which is highly likely.
Players and officials have been well rewarded over many years.
Hubs now is the only way the game gets up this year and quite possibly next year also. If they want this way of life to survive they need to suck it up.
 
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If they do go ahead with the “hub” you just know they’ll *smile* it up some how.
 
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Without crowds interested in the game there is no TV audience. You can't really have one without the other as interest in the game is what drives the TV revenue.

They need to get the crowds back. I reckon the games without crowds have a fairly short life before people turn off and it would only work if they can play a few rounds without crowds knowing that the crowds will be let in after, say, 4 rounds. Even if we have to limit crowd numbers you need the crowd back.

You don't want to turn people off the game and I reckon a long period of games in empty stadia would do that after about 4 weeks.

DS
As long as we are winning the majority of those games in an empty stadium and charging towards another grand final i dont think any tiger supporters will be turned off the game. As always it is about winning and losing. If we were at the bottom of the ladder than yes maybe lose some interest but while we are winning, no way.
 
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The afl opened a can of worms with this hubs idea full stop, and thought all the players were just going to bend over There entitled to stand there ground.All of sudden because less cases have occurred means we are out of the woods.
 
If we end up with something that resembles a comp and we win the Grand Final, all good. We're back to back and officially a Dynasty.
If the season is cancelled, fine. Can understand that and footy without crowds just isn't right.

But if they put together something and we don't win the Premiership, then it's a farce of the highest level. It should never have happened. It's made a mockery of our game. *smile* money hungry AFL
 
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If the AFL is adamant they need to get this hub idea off the ground to get the game re-started, then why talk about 20 weeks? Why not trial it for 6 matches to see what works and what doesn't work?

That would leave 10 home and away games left (5 home and 5 away). If we’re lucky, clubs might be able to return to their home bases to train and play by then. Maybe even have small crowds with social distancing at games to bring in some revenue? The whole COVID-19 is changing all the time. And the way things are looking now, there is a chance we might be COVID free in 3-4 months. There are only 49 live cases in Victoria.
 
I spoke briefly with a club doc and he won't be giving up his private practice to go into a hub. He said other docs are in the same boat and also that players aren't happy.

90% of the players won't be happy.
Don't listen to the bulkshiit the media are spreading.
Sharing of doctors... bulkshiit
Sharing of physios.. bulkshiit
Sharing of dieticians.. bullshiit.

Grand final played in front on nobody.
That's going to be exciting
 
Aren't hotels empty? Isn't the AFL full of big swinging *smile* wheeler/dealers? How hard would it be to approach a hotel and come to an accom for free sponsorship arrangement?

Players will love 8 weeks in a hotel room.
Why don't they just put all the players in D Division??
 
There are only 49 live cases in Victoria.
That's 49 known cases, hence the extended testing and the deployment of the app to try to find the extent of asymptomatic cases and trace their contacts. Fingers crossed it's only 49 cases because the alternative is more far-reaching than losing a season of AFL.
 
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At the end of the season there will be one team with a premiership who won't care less and everyone else who pokes holes in it.

No different than any other season.

Who won the 1986 lightening premiership ?
No one no knows and no one cares.
This year will be exactly the same..

Winning a GF in front of nobody.
Will they still do the speeches?
Will they still run around the ground with the cup?
Will The Killers perform after the GF?
Football isn't horse racing
 
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Quite frankly we are that professional these days this will make us even stronger favorites. Unless some players have spat the dummy over the hubs then we are rooted.
 
Apparently Cotch isn't too happy about it

He has 3 young tackers at home.
His insta is full of him playing with his kids.
He doesn't want to spend 8 weeks away from them.
I hope players revolt against this bullshiitt
 
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