Tearing up tradition for radical 17-5 or 18-4 fixture model is just lunacy, writes Jon Ralph

THIS season there has been an average of 3.5 upsets a round and 11 games decided by under a goal, so a radical restructure of the fixture is just lunacy, writes JON RALPH.

North Melbourne caused a massive boilover against Adelaide in Round 7. Picture: Getty Images

NO AFL season has ever been less in need of saving than this one, currently delivering spectacular results on a weekly basis.

Yet on Thursday the AFL’s head honchos will sit down to consider the biggest rejig to the home-and-away model we have seen.

Gillon McLachlan’s baby features a radical restructure which splits teams into three groups of six for a final run-in to the finals.

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He says it will heighten excitement and eliminate dead rubbers leading into September in a period where ratings and attendances often drop off.

If Gill wants it, you just know it gets done — either for next year, or the home-and-away season that follows.

So what is it that the league is desperate to save us from given the two months that have just passed? I mean, if this season is wrong, I don’t wanna be right.

Melbourne players celebrate a goal on their way to beating top team Adelaide last weekend. The Demons are 10th on the ladder. Picture: AAP

Eight weeks in, no one has any idea who will win the flag, the Brownlow Medal or even finish in the eight.

All three are a total crapshoot, which is exactly what we want them to be.

If Sydney knocks off St Kilda this weekend, a team entering the round in 15th could still be a flag contender.

TAB statistics show we are averaging 3.5 upsets a round, clearly the most in the past decade.

Already 11 games have been decided by under a goal, the second-highest figure since 1999.

The Brownlow Medal is as wide open as ever, with no clear favourite emerging compared to Patrick Dangerfield ($3.50), Nathan Fyfe ($2.25) and Gary Ablett ($2.25) had clearing out by Round 9 in the past three years.

And the premiership could be won by anyone, with every finals contender so far enduring a flat spot or form slump.

So why did we want to tear up decades of tradition again for a 17-5 or 18-4 system that has so many warts?

The model to be considered has been reported as an 18-4 model which sees all teams play once before derbies, showdowns and blockbusters are played in Round 18.

Then the teams split into three groups — 1-6, 7-12 and 13-18 — to play a four-match series that eliminates dead rubbers and heightens tension.

As the Herald Sun reported this month, the team which wins the 13-18 group could qualify for a finals wildcard bid or draft incentives.

Yet mostly the team on the bottom of the ladder is there for a reason — it is no bloody good.

It can’t suddenly spring to life in the last month to satisfy Gill’s requirement for exciting games and draft incentives.

Carlton is currently 13th but will the Blues have any incentive to finish 12th or higher and cop a hard draw in the final rounds? Picture: Getty Images

Fans won’t flood to watch a game between the bottom two teams for 385 draft points, when no one understands that system anyway.

And it’s lunacy to think the 13th team could make finals when the 12th-placed team starts Round 19 with three or four more wins but then tackles a harder draw.

What if Adelaide and Port Adelaide play early in the year, play again in Round 18, then again in the 1-6 group?

Two clubs playing each other three times in a season while others play them only once is plain unfair.

The AFL hasn’t yet decided if a club’s premiership points will be carried into the final four weeks or reset to zero.

But what would be the incentive to keep winning if the ladder leader was three games clear weeks before the Round 18 cut-off, knowing it would lose its points?

If a team was 12th close to cut-off, would it try to tank to get in the 13-18th group, knowing it could get into the wildcard playoff that way?

And if there was no wildcard incentive for the bottom group, you guarantee 12 dead rubbers in those final four weeks.

Let’s hope the league isn’t serious about an 18-4 fixture.