AFL has made right call scrapping Grand Final replay but golden point scenario is wrong
THE AFL’s decision to scrap the Grand Final replay is not before time, but it doesn’t mean the league has nailed the execution of a decider with extra-time, writes Jon Ralph.
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BRISBANE could have equalled the greatest feat in VFL-AFL history if AFL regulations didn’t consistently screw over non-Victorian teams.
In 2004 as the Lions strived for their record-equalling four-peat they were denied a rightful home preliminary final because contracts demanded the game be played at the MCG.
Forced to travel back and forth after a Saturday night preliminary final, their quest to win that fourth flag just came up short.
Leigh Matthews has since admitted it took all his will power not to punch Andrew Demetriou on the nose in the immediate aftermath of that game.
That kind of disadvantage — since rectified — is why the AFL’s decision to scrap the Grand Final replay is not before time.
In a competition with eight non-Victorian teams (two of them residing 2727km west of Melbourne) it is tough enough that the MCG should always host the Grand Final.
Making those non-Victorian teams fly back and forth before a replayed Grand Final is just downright wrong.
But it doesn’t mean the AFL has nailed the execution of a Grand Final with extra-time, and effectively a golden point.
AFL footy boss Mark Evans says under the agreed system there will be five minutes of extra-time each way before the next score wins.
So if all 10 minutes have elapsed, a rushed behind or a shanked kick will see one team hoist the premiership cup.
So, in effect, no one in the crowd will have any real idea when extra-time morphs from into this last-gasp period.
It is the real weakness of this overhaul, which Mark Evans boasted could provide “the best game in history” rather than the usual anti-climax.
In the 2012 TAC Cup grand final no one had any idea that Jackson Macrae’s 45m shot on the run from the boundary had won the game.
Take a look at him on YouTube with his hands over his head, believing he had only put his side a point up late in the game.
The fans directly behind the goals had no idea either, still in their seats as his behind sails through.
Then the siren sounds to confirm the golden point that had almost zero tension because of the confusion.
So if all 10 minutes have elapsed, a rushed behind or a shanked kick will see one team hoist the premiership cup. 
The AFL can’t disadvantage 100,000 fans within the stadium by withholding the state of play while TV viewers are aware of the seconds ticking down.
Big kicks that win Grand Final become even greater because of the context — we know if a player’s kick will win a game or just put a side ahead late in the contest.
The AFL is still reviewing its policy — the simple solution is a flashing warning on the scoreboards when we have entered golden score territory.
Surely next goal wins the grand final not next score if we are getting rid of replays. Next score I don't like it
— Scott Pendlebury (@SP_10) April 19, 2016
I know 'nit picking'... But what if Grand Final decided by a handball for a point??? Golden Point or Golden Goal better??? 🤔 @AFL
— Marty Pask (@mpask) April 19, 2016
Better still, why not play a second 10 minutes of extra-time in the Grand Final if scores are locked, then enter the golden score period.
Evans said the league wanted to standardise its finals extra-time system, but when has consistency been the league’s strong point?
Especially when the AFL Commission considered but decided against introducing extra time for home-and-away games as well.
Imagine two teams in a pitched battle in the second period of extra-time, barely able to run but aware football immortality is only minutes away.
Now that is a way to deserve premiership greatness.
As for Scott Pendlebury’s contention that the new formula should be golden goal formula rather than golden point?
Barry Breen’s 1966 winning point was a gnarly mung of a kick that floated and swayed and bounced, yet in its own way it was utterly glorious.
Sometimes any score will do — but if the AFL is to make this change it needs to bring its spectators with it, not keep them in the dark.
Originally published as AFL has made right call scrapping Grand Final replay but golden point scenario is wrong
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