There’s innovation and then there’s the AFL’s Opening Round

By Murray Silby

Mar 11, 2024

**Opening gaffe:** The AFL’s Opening Round aimed to encourage growth in the game in non-traditional AFL regions such as Greater Western Sydney, but left supporters of 10 clubs without a direct interest.

Opening Round, Round Zero, whatever you call it, it was no hero in my book.

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Sometimes, change is progress, and sometimes it’s the AFL’s Opening Round.

Think AFLX, the short-lived modified Australian Rules game thought up by the AFL in 2017 with smaller teams, and played on a rectangular field. Forgotten by most, pilloried by the rest.

As someone who has played Aussie rules overseas, often across two rugby or soccer pitches side by side, those games had more merit than Opening Round.

Opening Round was devised by the AFL to promote the game in the non-traditional Australian rules states of Queensland and NSW. That seems a good idea to me. I was with them at that point.

Various reasons were given for the timing — last weekend — starting Thursday, March 7.

The main reason was making a foray into the traditional rugby league states while the NRL’s focus was on games it was playing in Las Vegas.

Four AFL games were scheduled over Thursday, Friday and Saturday, two in each of NSW and Queensland.

Sydney played Melbourne at the SCG on Thursday, followed by Brisbane hosting Carlton on Friday, Gold Coast at home to Richmond on Saturday afternoon and Greater Western Sydney hosting Collingwood on Saturday night.

That left supporters of other clubs to wait for a full Round One (yes, they call it Round One) to start on Thursday, March 14.

Like most ideas conceived before midnight, this one started with a grain of common sense.

Playing games in the non-traditional states before the NRL season has got going in its stronghold states sounds like a good idea, but then the clock struck 12, and planning went awry.

The Las Vegas games were played four days before the AFL started, and rugby league supporters’ attention had already turned to NRL games on Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

There was even an NRL game in Melbourne, the AFL’s heartland, where no AFL game was played at all.

So, the reverse of the AFL’s goal actually happened. The NRL played in the AFL’s heartland while its attention was on the NRL heartland.

And the NRL played on the Sunday, whereas the AFL did not, and neither code played a game on the Monday of the long weekend.

So, the concept of sneaking into enemy territory while its back was turned backfired. The enemy was actually back at base, cavorting with the locals.

And, after all that, supporters of the AFL teams that did not play, and have consumed all the positive media chatter about their club definitely being in premiership contention this season, were ignored.

Even if they were of the mind to tune into one of the other games, they had nothing to watch after Saturday night on a long weekend; except the NRL, of course.

Sometimes the AFL boffins think too much.

The game has been making strong inroads in enemy territory for decades now, with crowd numbers and participation rates ever-increasing.

Its administrators should have faith in their product and support their current supporters as much as they try to woo others.

— Murray Silby is a senior journalist (and Western Bulldogs supporter) at The News