POTENTIAL rule changes to combat congestion will head the agenda when the AFL Competition Committee meets for the second time on Wednesday.
The AFL has released the agenda for Wednesday's meeting, with the other main items the fixture and player movement.
But the state of the game will likely dominate discussion after League football operations manager Steve Hocking said last week his team had zeroed in on three or four proposed rule changes that would be put before the committee.
Hocking has briefed clubs in recent weeks on the results of rule trials conducted by Hawthorn, Brisbane and Fremantle.
It is widely expected Hocking will recommend to the committee:
- Starting positions be adopted at centre bounces and around-the-ground stoppages.
- The goalsquare be expanded from nine to 18m.
- The cap on rotations be reduced from its current limit of 90.
Under the starting positions proposal, at centre bounces six players from each team would be positioned in the three main areas of the ground – the defensive 50m arc, the midfield and the forward 50m arc.
At stoppages, the AFL will stipulate how many players from each side have to start in each 50m arc. It's understood the League is yet to settle on its preferred model, with two, three or four players all options being considered.
Hocking said last Tuesday he was not convinced rotations had to be cut to 40, with some clubs of the belief 60 or 70 might be the new limit.
The AFL’s general manager of clubs Travis Auld will give a presentation on the fixture at Wednesday's meeting, when he is likely to touch on this year's schedule for round 23.
The player movement discussion is almost certain to include an update on the League's plans to introduce a mid-season player exchange period from next season.
The competition committee includes the following club representatives: presidents Colin Carter (Geelong Cats), Eddie McGuire (Collingwood), Peggy O'Neal (Richmond); CEOs Andrew Fagan (Adelaide), Andrew Ireland (Sydney), Justin Reeves (Hawthorn); coaches Chris Fagan (Brisbane), Brad Scott (North Melbourne); football managers Chris Davies (Port Adelaide), Craig Vozzo (West Coast); players Patrick Dangerfield (Geelong and AFLPA president) and Steven May (Gold Coast).
The AFL's representatives are Hocking (chair), Jason Ball (commissioner), Nicole Livingstone (AFLW head of football) and Kylie Rogers (general manager commercial operations), while AFLPA general manager player relations Brett Murphy is also a committee member.
