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Western Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge urges AFL to not be ‘too dramatic’ as it considers rule changes
AS the AFL trials new rules ahead of likely change, Western Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge has urged the League not to take too big a leap. RECAP THE DAY’S FOOTY NEWS
WESTERN Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge has called for the AFL to “not be too dramatic” with changes to our “pure” game.
Congestion has been widely regarded as a stain on the 2018 season, with poor games producing low scores with alarming frequency. TRADETV: RECAP OUR TRADE TALK BELOW It has initiated the formation of the AFL’s ‘Competition Committee’ which is tasked with the responsibility of making change to improve the aesthetics of the game, with chief executive Gillon McLachlan saying the league was open to all possibilities. SU PER RANKINGS: WHO IS WHERE AFTER ROUND 12? SUPER RANKINGS: SEE SAM AND ROBBO’S TOP 20 FOR R12 But Beveridge said finetuning was needed more than drastic change. “Obviously there’s some talking points around congestion and scoring at the moment,” Beveridge said. “There’s some quite cosmetic changes that we can make by simply balling the ball up a bit quicker which means that you don’t nominate ruckmen. “It’s the club’s or the team’s obligation to make sure they only have one (man) up if we want to maintain the ‘one up’ rule.” The 2016 premiership coach conceded congestion was an unavoidable beast, but that didn’t mean radical change is the answer. “There’s things currently in the game through the broadcast and the umpires not moving the game on quick enough that encourage and entice congestion,” he said. “There’ll always be times where there’s a lot of numbers in certain areas. But I think we make the cosmetic changes and let’s see how it affects us. “I’m not for some of the remedies that people are discussing because I just think that you can make really simple adjustments and things can change.” However, McLachlan is open to trialling possible solutions, as evidenced by the secret match simulation conducted by Hawthorn at Etihad Stadium last Saturday. He said AFL football operations manager Steve Hocking will leave no stone unturned searching for the answers to congestion. “He will look as widely as he possibly can”, McLachlan told SEN. “I think he’s looked at 30-odd different things and he’ll work through that. And if it’s zero it’s zero, if it’s 10 it’s 10, if it’s 30 it’s 30. “I’ll be clearly prosecuting where they land but I know that he’s going to have a very strong set of recommendations.” What McLachlan can confirm is that the game won’t stand idle in the face of one of its greatest challenges. “I think that Steve will come up with change. I don’t think we’re going to be in the status-quo. What that looks like, I don’t know yet. “If you had to start with six forwards and six backs and maybe two of them had to be in the goal square … I don’t think anyone would notice.” RECAP ALL TODAY’S AFL NEWS AS IT HAPPENS IN THE BLOG BELOW
Originally published as Western Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge urges AFL to not be ‘too dramatic’ as it considers rule changes