IF YOUR days at the footy seem to be dragging on more and more, it's not just your imagination.
Monday's Herald Sun revealed the average duration of a game had increased more than seven minutes in the past five years, up from 117 minutes and 20 seconds in 2006 to 124:37 this season.
Coaches and fans have long referred to the 120 minutes their side has to wage football 'war' each week, but the Herald Sun showed the 120-minute game and 30-minute quarter are fast becoming relics of a past age.
The longest game this year, Saturday's Fremantle-St Kilda clash, went for 139:49. In other words, each quarter went an average 34:57.
This game was not been a one-off either, with two other matches going for more than 135 minutes (Gold Coast v Brisbane Lions, round seven, 138:03; Fremantle v North Melbourne, round 4, 136:26) and another two exceeding 130 minutes (Western Bulldogs v Richmond, round eight, 131:45; West Coast v Sydney Swans, round three, 131:32).
Reporter Mark Stevens said this trend was explained by increased scoring, umpires blowing time-on more often, the game's soaring number of boundary throw-ins and television advertisements breaks after goals.
Stevens said games were now dragging on too long and suggested 17-and-a-half-minute quarters with time-on might be the answer.
AFL football operations manager Adrian Anderson told Stevens the AFL's Laws of the Game Committee would seek feedback from the clubs on this issue.
"It's something that's changing, that we need to monitor," Anderson said.
"We need to look at what's causing it and the possible consequences."
It will be interesting to see what comes of the Laws of the Game Committee's investigations.
Media Watch is confident most, if not all, supporters would welcome a return to 30-minute quarters. And it's a safe bet the players will welcome any respite they can get in this new world of three-man interchange benches and substitutes.
Going the early crow on the Swans
After 10 rounds, The Sydney Morning Herald has called it - the Sydney Swans are all but assured of a finals berth.
All bar two of the competition's sides still have 13 home and away games to play - Richmond and Port Adelaide have 12, having not yet had a bye - but with five wins and a draw the sixth-placed Swans are sitting pretty in the top eight, reporter Andrew Wu says.
The Swans currently lead ninth-placed Richmond by a game and nearly 10 percentage points, and have a further game's advantage on the teams sitting 10th and 11th, Melbourne and St Kilda.
It doesn't take long for the landscape to change quickly in the AFL. While 2009-10 Grand Finalist St Kilda was widely written off after its dismal start to the season, the Saints have won their past two games, against Melbourne and, more impressively, Fremantle at Patersons Stadium.
There is another obvious danger side lurking beneath the Swans too, 2008-10 preliminary finalists Western Bulldogs.
While the Bulldogs have also struggled in the early stages of 2011, they have had their injury concerns. If they can get the likes of Brian Lake, Barry Hall and Adam Cooney fit and firing, they, too, are capable of making a charge at the finals.
However, Wu makes his Swans claim, knowing he has history on his side.
He points out that since the introduction of the final eight in 1994, no more than two sides have broken into the eight from this point in the season in any year.
This has happened seven times, nine times there has been only one change and in 2006 there was no change.
Wu acknowledges the threat the Saints pose, but says injury-stricken Fremantle, currently eighth, is the side most likely to slip out of the eight.
And with the Swans playing top-four sides just three more times this year, Wu says: "Sydney fans can all but gear themselves up for another finals berth this year".
He's probably right.
Suns rising quickly
Media Watch had to do a double take when it checked the half-time scores of last Saturday night's Gold Coast-Geelong match. But the scores had not changed when we looked at them - no matter how hard we wiped our glasses - a second time: Gold Coast 9.8 (62) v Geelong 8.3 (51).
Against the competition's undefeated ladder-ladder, the AFL's newest side was 11 points up on the back of six more scoring shots. Amazing.
Predictably, reality - the Cats' battle-hardened bodies and minds - kicked in in the second half, Geelong piling on 13.10 to 1.5 to run out 66-point winners.
But that did not dull the sense of excitement about what lies ahead for the Suns' unprecedented horde of elite youngsters.
Leading the charge to climb aboard their bandwagon is The Age's Rohan Connolly.
In his Monday column, Connolly likened the Suns to a tennis prodigy taking their first steps on the pro tour.
Connolly said the "pros" could get by on their "superior conditioning" at the moment, but the Suns' rapid rate of improvement would be "discomforting".
Connolly singled out ruckman Zac Smith and thumping kick Trent McKenzie as examples of the precocious prodigies filling the Suns' list.
The Suns' improvement since their first three games - losses by 119, 71 and 90 points to Carlton, Western Bulldogs and Melbourne respectively - had been "remarkable", Connolly said.
The Suns were badly beaten in the contested-ball counts in those three matches, but beat the Cats in this area on Saturday night and broke even in clearances.
"It's becoming increasingly clear that once Gold Coast catches its rivals in the physical stakes, the hype about a 'superteam' might not be far off the mark," Connolly said.
It's hard to argue with him. But it's not something opposition supporters - nearly all of us - should fear.
With the talent they've got at their disposal, the Suns might soon ride roughshod over your team, but they'll do it with such breathtaking skill you almost won't mind watching them do it.
In short
Fremantle may not be in a crisis but their 2011 campaign is in trouble as they struggle to cover for injured players Aaron Sandilands, Michael Barlow, Roger Hayden and Alex Silvagni, The West Australian reports.
Sydney Swans defender Heath Grundy will take on Brisbane Lions skipper Jonathan Brown this Saturday night buoyed by his return to form against North Melbourne key forward Drew Petrie, The Daily Telegraph reports.
Star Carlton midfielder Marc Murphy is close to signing a new three-year contract, Blues coach Brett Ratten told Channel Seven's Game Day.
The views in this story are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
