Patrick Dangerfield says reducing interchange for good of the game is based on flawed theories

AS the league looks for ways to make the game more attractive, AFLPA president and Geelong star PATRICK DANGERFIELD says there’s one thing the AFL must not do.

Patrick Dangerfield says the AQFL mustn’t further reduce interchange numbers. Picture Sarah Reed

ZONING in the AFL could be introduced without anyone knowing.

If I spent a day in the seat of AFL footy boss Steve Hocking I’d do a secret trial which I guarantee no-one would notice.

A phone call to Geelong and a quiet word to Tom Hawkins to tell him to stay inside the 50 metre arc when the ball is down the other end of the ground would be all that’s required.

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The same call would also go up to Sydney to Buddy Franklin. Then to Perth for a chat with Josh Kennedy and then onto Adelaide for a yak with Tex Walker.

No-one would be any the wiser — well, maybe the coach might have an idea — but suddenly the conversation would swing back to, ‘Gee it’s great to see the big gun forwards staying deep again’.

The problem is the word ‘zone’ scares people and can spark hysteria. It shouldn’t send fear into people because I think it could work and be implemented without really blinking an eye.

Patrick Dangerfield writes that zoning rules could easily be implemented by stealth. Picture: Wayne Ludbey

What needs to change is the limiting of the interchange.

The constant hysteria around the number of interchanges and how they need to be slashed for the good of the game is based on flawed theories.

In 2014 the cap of 120 was introduced and then in 2016 it came down to 90 and remains at that today.

There is talk it should come down to 40. Madness.

The interchange debate is not relevant anymore. It should be treated like a number of issues that become trends for a while and then disappear as the football world moves on.

Remember a few years back when there was outrage about sliding in below the knees. There were a couple of highlighted cases and then it disappeared. Umpires started paying more free kicks and it’s now not part of our psyche.

And then there’s the dreaded osteitis pubis back in the 2000s. Every footballer seemed to have OP in 2008, now you don’t hear anyone having it.

The noise around the interchange should also subside for the simple fact that reducing it doesn’t benefit the game in any way and certainly doesn’t benefit the players.

Dangerfield says interchange numbers can’t be slashed. Picture Sarah Reed

Limiting the number of interchanges doesn’t contribute to opening the game up. The improvement on that front this year has been the adjudicating by the umpires of various rules.

The deliberate out-of-bounds rule has quickened the game up, kept it flowing and I think it’s a brilliant rule.

This year’s adjudication of holding the ball — where if it’s dislodged in the tackle is play-on — seems to frustrate some but it means the ball can be tapped on and play continue moving forward.

My understanding about the interchange cap theory was that it would speed up the game, reduce congestion and make it more free-flowing.

It would also forces coaches to push their midfielders forward rather than go to the bench.

That’s a great idea except most of the time you’re so knackered that you can’t play the way you really want to play.

Take our game last Sunday for example when we were down to one on the bench for a bit over a quarter.

Players would become even more fatigued and lose penetration if stricter interchange limits are applied, Patrick Dangerfield says. Pic: Michael Klein

That makes a massive difference in itself and I don’t want to see an extended bench but when you’re limiting on how many times you can roll people off the bench in that circumstance it becomes a major issue.

Players lose penetration in their kicking, their explosiveness drops off as does the ability to make good decisions.

And the end result of all those factors is ... more congestion.

The thing is the game has never been in better shape. It’s the most even competition we’ve had in years. Players are doing amazing things every week. Crowds are huge. Interest in game hasn’t been higher.

Yet we focus on the negatives like interchange rather than embrace what is great in the game. Losing and the negatives has become bigger than winning and any positive news.

To the AFL’s credit they’ve been willing to drop things that haven’t worked. The substitution rule was a good idea at the time but after a while they realised it didn’t serve its purpose so it went.

The game must always keep evolving but as for the interchange cap, let’s hope it becomes the OP of 2018.