I like the rule except for this. The player really should be able to go back on the line (as the kicker can do) and jump as long as they are on that line and not over the mark. Otherwise, the rule is good.So they've opened up the horizontal plane by planting the marker but what about the vertical?
Are they going to stop the marker from flapping arms above their heads?
I assume I'm the only person (outside of Hocking, etc) that has liked the idea of this rule from the get-go.
There are two ways to have possession of the ball and have someone on the mark. One is getting a free kick, and the other is taking a mark. In both cases, the guy deserves to have the ball. But, unfairly in my opinion, umpires in recent years have called "play on" as soon as that player has taken a single step to the side while letting the guy standing the mark move anywhere he wants (other than over the mark). If one player can't move sideways, why should the other? The player who deserves to have the ball is at a disadvantage.
The new rule allows the player with the ball a split-second advantage, and will be good for the game.
The bloke with the ball already had lots of advantages. This just gives them one more. The only thing this rule does well is it stops the Hawthorn (soon adopted by Collingwood and Geelong) spuds from infringing on the player on the mark. Had they explicitly outlawed that I'd have cheered them on. This rule is crap.Nuh - you weren’t quite Robinson Crusoe on that but it’s fair to say the overwhelming majority of posts here were those against it.
Based on our two games I don’t recall any clanger umpiring decisions relating to this rule (despite many horrible umpiring decisions elsewhere during the same games).
It would seem that the players have adapted and are immediately self-imposing the rule on themselves - hence no infringements.
Assuming this continues - I reckon the game looks better as a result of giving the bloke with the ball more options.
Pretty sure Baker did exactly that last nightIf the ball is on the wing what's to stop a team from having no marker and instead have that person guarding corridor space effectively forcing the kicker down the line.
If the ball is on the wing what's to stop a team from having no marker and instead have that person guarding corridor space effectively forcing the kicker down the line.
Shouldn't be an issue at all. We've still got plenty of players that happily indulge in the physical pressure side of things n half the " pressure ' issue is implied pressure anyway. Always a player harassing the ball carrier, or surrounding the contest forcing them to rush disposal without thinking or sizing up options.We are in a good space as most of the team have slimmed down over summer and looking really fit.
My only concern is how this might affect our pressure game.
The player with the ball, in the case of a freekick or mark, has less advantage than a player in free play with the ball. This gives them the advantage they deserve. This rule has potential.The bloke with the ball already had lots of advantages. This just gives them one more. The only thing this rule does well is it stops the Hawthorn (soon adopted by Collingwood and Geelong) spuds from infringing on the player on the mark. Had they explicitly outlawed that I'd have cheered them on. This rule is crap.
When is it "walking off" and when is it moving?I don't think anyone else stood the mark, they all just walked off and let him take it because the siren had sounded and he couldn't play on. It doesn't have to be your opponent that takes it.
It's walking off before the umpire yells "STAND STAND STAND STAND STAND STAND"When is it "walking off" and when is it moving?
When is "play on" called from kick-in? It is way too much of an advantage to have the man marking the kick-in made to STAND!Not liking the new rules.
The one I haven’t seen mentioned is pushing the mark back a further 5 metres when opponents are kicking in after a behind. Now the mark is 15m behind the “goal square”, and player on mark not to move until oppo plays on. It just makes it too easy for defender to get his kick well outside 50 which makes our trademark forward pressure less effective. The manning the mark is a joke and makes for a less skilled game. Sure the scoring might be high (ala saints v blues) but it is like watching circle work. Was horrible imho.
Nothing is stopping a player from guarding corridor space. But that also means that no one is on the mark, and the player with the ball can play on straight over the mark. Surely that's better than the previous situation where the player with the ball is almost corralled into only one option
Credit where due, they have taken the sensible options on grand final start/20-minute quarters. With things not quite back to normal, now is not the time to alienate people who've had a long spell away from the game.Not a new rule as such but the AFL has announced the Grand Final is back to a day time slot.
Fair to say the widespread suggestion the AFL would use last year's different landscape to maintain the changes is looking pretty silly.