Had his usual influence on the game. Can’t ask for more than that…
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didn’t silvagni play the week after Merrett got rubbed out for punching him in the stomach?
Nah he didn’t play another game for the season!
From memory he recovered from the broken ribs then did another injury at training or in the hub scratch matches.
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First time Cutler has played an AFL match for us without squibbing a contest. Marked improvement.
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Silvagnis are sub human. Their bodies work on a different level
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Ironically enough, it has happened with concussion. A few times over the past couple of years a player has been concussed (with the MRO giving differing impact ratings, go figure,) and the concussed player has been available for selection the following week. Douglas v Merrett, Carlisle v Riewoldt, and Naitanui v Amon spring to mind.
Agree. Do we need someone to watch a gps and their assistant in a box?
How much better was footy in Round 1, and will it stick?: The Champion Index
March 24th, 2021 3:37 pm
There were plenty of concerned voices about the dramatic changes to AFL rules heading into the season; but it was all positivity on Monday morning.
The question is what actually was altered; and will it stick around?
In this week’s edition of The Champion Index, we run a rule over Round 1 and see what it showed about how footy will look in 2021 - with thanks to Champion Data .
THE NUMBERS
The hotly-debated changes to the AFL’s rules in recent seasons, led by Steve Hocking, were an attempt to - as Gerard Healy would say - “free the Sherrin”.
They certainly appeared to do that.
“I feel more optimistic about the game than I have in ages,” Gerard Whateley told his SEN audience Monday.
As the numbers below show, scoring didn’t shoot up dramatically, but the manner which teams played with changed.
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The numbers are broken up into sections for a reason.
Round 1 is always an outlier round; teams try new things and learn what doesn’t work. Rounds 2 to 5 are an adjustment period, and if after a month a club has a losing record, you’ll often see them revert to defensive tactics to stem the bleeding.
That’s most visible in the scoring numbers; Round 1 teams have scored an average of eight points a game more than later in the season
So what did we see in Round 1 this year?
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Teams were able to move the ball from defensive 50 to forward 50 with greater ease - around 20 per cent of D50 to F50 chains were successful in recent years, but almost 27 per cent were in Round 1;
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Players actually played on from marks slightly less often; perhaps because they had more and better options, due to the stand rule;
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The most dramatic and visible changes were the declines in stoppages and tackles; both down over 20 per cent from Round 6 onwards across 2016-19.
Brodie Grundy is down on form, but he can’t have as much of an impact anyway if there aren’t as many stoppages for him to attend. (Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
SO WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR THE REST OF THE SEASON?
History tells us these numbers will regress back to normal; they always do. But some of the changes are particularly dramatic.
It looks to us like the cut in tackle numbers, and the improved ability for teams to transition the footy, are most likely to stick.
After all, they’re the largest changes, and they go along with what you’d expect given the rules that have been altered.
The good news is these are changes you can actually sense as a normal footy fan. The game felt more free-flowing last weekend; these numbers just reflect that.
And you would be hard-pressed to find a fan who wants the game to stay in a state of slow, rolling mauls.
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LMFAO
Glad I no longer waste my time watching non Essendon matches. Going by the scores, what a way to ruin what looks to be a decent game.
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Non calls happen in every sport. Was a cracking game. I’m genuinely surprised how much I’m enjoying non Essendon games this year.
I’d like to implement a rule to enforce all contests are one on one. From now on both players are to be tethered together with a 3m bungee line. To interchange you must drag you’re opponent to your interchange. If you get through the gates the opponent must wait until your team mate is connected to the tether for both players to resume playing in the match. Also Gleeson must match up on Fyfe, dusty, Gary Rohan.
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There you go Mr Scott. And if it happens again we’ve got a wet tram ticket and we are not afraid to use it.
Might as well post the article on the latest backflip.
Didn’t even pass muster in all the practice games, which must be a new record.
Though the “softening “ still sounds farked to me. So I’ll wait for that to be abandoned totally in a fortnight
I know it is maybe not up to AFL but the COVID at Marvel which they own is a shambles.
I see no reason why they cannot return to full capacity, as the concept of social distancing just does not exist. You can regulate how people enter the ground but once there everywhere is just wall to wall people.
If they were serious, masks would be required, temperature checks would be made and distances in queues for drinks and food would be policed.
I hope that our next home game at the G, vs Fark Carlscum is open and common-sense prevails.
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Big ole throw.
Umpiring looked to have a line of sight as well.
Yeah. Saturday was my first time back at a game and we had people sitting either side of us, directly behind and directly in front. The sentiments were the same from everyone in our vicinity. What’s the point in this? We aren’t socially distancing, and if so why shouldn’t I be able to sit in my reserved seat that I’ve paid for?
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I agree - who are they selling our seats to and for how much?
We got nothing last year and are being ripped off now!
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With the level of community transmission temperature checks are overkill and policing drink and food lines are left to the community to implement everywhere else so why not here?
The bridge to the train was far worse than anything in the stadium.
At 75% capacity having dedicated seats and locked zones in the stadium is fine. If someone on the rare chance attends and is positive you can at least say which part of the stadium they’ve been in with a degree of certainty.
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They know where my reserved seat is as well.
Someone else gets that seat and we are put in a restricted view area paying premium price.
It is a typical AFL rip off.
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I’m not talking about your reserved seat at all.