Jacob Wilson from Champion Data:
There's two problems compared to 20 years ago ...
(i) It's becoming harder and harder now to transition the ball from D50 to F50.
20 years ago 40% of the time the ball was transitioned.
Now 17% " .
And that trend is getting worse and worse year on year. It's becoming a game of turnovers.
As a result, teams are going wide and slow to avoid the risk of turnover trying to go via the corridor.
Most defensive-style sides: Brisbane, Collingwood & West Coast.
Most attacking-style sides: Richmond (via those forward handballs), St Kilda, Gold Coast & Port Adelaide.
(ii) When ball is in congestion it's becoming harder to break out of that congestion.
To fix this:
* 15 or 16-a-side teams. Easier to kick through a 16-man zone than a 18-man one. It's also the simplest option. Used the traffic analogy of less cars equals less congestion on the roads.
* 20m kick for a mark to be paid.
* Less time before needing to play-on after a mark.
* Automatic play-on if ball is kicked backwards (marks from backward kicks only allowed in F50).
These will extend the play and spread teams out. It will also remove the worst two players in each team which should also improve the skills level.
