Final eight could become final 10 in expanded fixtureMichael Gleeson
March 10, 2011WITH 18 teams in the competition next year, the AFL is considering a 10-team finals series to be played over five weeks.
An AFL working party has come up with a shortlist of more than 10 options for how best to fit an 18-team competition into the 28 weeks between cricket seasons.
Cutting the season to 17 weeks and playing each team once was not an option, AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou said.
''At the moment there is very strong support for maintaining 22 rounds. And we haven't fallen on a number for the finals,'' Demetriou said.
''We have looked at 22 weeks, 23 weeks, 24 weeks for the season … we have not fallen on whether we will have extra premiership games or not but it does stand to reason if you extend the season you have a reduced NAB Cup.''
''There is a model that has a final 10 with a five-week finals series. There are at least 10 options we have and we have not got a preference.''
Demetriou, a fan of the NAB Cup, said fatigue, particularly for the fans of lowly clubs during a longer season, was a factor to consider.
He said the AFL would only cut the NAB Cup if the season were extended, saying the pre-season competition ''is four weeks where we get to talk about AFL football and we are not going to give up that space to other codes''.
Demetriou said the options, developed by a working party including club chief executives Gary Pert (Collingwood), Steve Rosich (Fremantle), Cameron Schwab (Melbourne) and Andrew Ireland (Sydney), were with the AFL executive. A version had been shown to the AFL commission and a final decision would be made by June.
The AFL remained committed to a rematch in the event of a drawn grand final.
Demetriou also said the AFL was looking to simplify how money was distributed to the clubs, with a view to replacing the multiple payments with a single one.
''We have our distributions to the clubs, we have the special dividend from the last broadcast rights of $1.2 million a year, the [Annual Special Distribution] fund of about $6 million a year, we have the strategic partnership fund of about $1.8 million and the equalisation levy which comes out of the gate, which is $2 for every adult that attends, and then things like prizemoney, ''Demetriou said.
''We think we can look at all those funds and see if we can come up with a much simpler and transparent way of distributing money to the clubs and take away all these layers of funding. That is the intention, whether we get there is another thing.
''The clubs have said to us very clearly, if you ask Collingwood Hawthorn, 'please don't tax us, we would rather you increase and disequalise the distribution than tax us'.
''So if there is $6 million in the ASD, one argument is we would rather you have more than $6 million and distribute more money to the disadvantaged clubs - if that is the word you want to use - than tax us and disadvantage us.''
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