No place like dome for Saints
Jake Niall
The Age
October 17, 2006
ST KILDA has been scheduled to play 13 of its 22 games at Telstra Dome next year the most by any club since the stadium opened while Collingwood will play 15 games at the MCG.
In its draft version of the draw, the AFL has made the Saints the night specialists, with 14 games under lights, including up to seven Friday nights and what is becoming a traditional Thursday night game at the start of the Easter weekend against the Brisbane Lions.
Collingwood's 15 MCG games consist of nine home games and six away fixtures. In all, the Magpies have one-third of the 45 regular-season games expected to be scheduled at the MCG.
Hawthorn, which has four home games in Launceston, has been given its seven remaining home games at the MCG, as it requested. The Hawks' decision to pick up St Kilda's two Tasmanian home games has allowed the Saints to play a record number of games at the Dome.
The AFL has delayed the announcement of the draw it was to be revealed tomorrow as it tries to make some late changes to the draft version. AFL commercial operations manager Ben Buckley said he did not expect substantial changes.
Geelong, which had been drawn to play four home games consecutively at Skilled Stadium, has asked that the AFL spread out its eight games in Geelong, instead of having them in clusters.
But the most striking feature of the provisional draw, which is unlikely to change greatly before the schedule is released, is that the clubs that play each another in the first seven rounds don't necessarily play each other twice.
In recent years, it has been uniform for each club's seven opening games to be repeated, more or less in order, from rounds 16-22.
Buckley said the new system of allowing rounds eight to 15 to be repeated allowed for a better overall draw. "The games that come in those weeks can be replayed in that last stanza as well," he said.
Next year, teams will play only some of the teams from their first seven games twice in many cases, clubs play in rounds 11 and 12 and then in the final rounds.
In other significant features of the draw's draft version:
■ Essendon has a much stronger presence on Saturday afternoons and has been given two twilight games.
■ Richmond plays Collingwood and Essendon twice, while the Magpies, Blues and Bombers keep their twice-a-year blockbusters.
■ Collingwood plays Melbourne and Sydney twice for the first time in many years despite those games being played in their traditional slots of round 11 (Queen's Birthday) and over the split round 12.
■ Melbourne and the Western Bulldogs will play their home games in Canberra against Sydney, which is considered the best drawing team in the nation's capital.
■ The Hawks are negotiating their four "make-up" away games that are given to members as compensation for the four Tasmanian games.
■ Geelong has been given a home game against Collingwood at the MCG, along with two Telstra Dome games and its customary eight home games at Skilled Stadium.
http://www.realfooty.theage.com.au/realfooty/articles/2006/10/16/1160850870893.html
