TO SAY Damien Hardwick is not a fan of bouncing the footy would be an understatement - and statistics show there might be some merit to his belief.

In Gold Coast's win over West Coast last weekend, Hardwick was unimpressed when youngster Leo Lombard took three bounces before running himself into trouble and turning the ball over.

"I'm not a big believer in bouncing the ball," Hardwick told Fox Footy at half-time. "The ball travels a lot faster if you actually just kick it."

With statistics provided by Champion Data, AFL.com.au did some digging to see whether Hardwick-coached teams adhered to his annoyance or whether it was a coach venting in the heat of the moment.

During Richmond's third premiership under Hardwick in 2020, no team took more bounces than the Tigers. They did have Jayden Short (who topped the League in that shortened year), Shai Bolton, Dustin Martin and Bachar Houli, who were all fond of taking a bounce.

In 2021 they were ranked fifth and 2022 they were second before Hardwick parted ways early the following year.

Whether it's personnel, a shift in gamestyle or just coincidence, since taking over as Gold Coast coach, Hardwick's team has dropped to 11th in both 2024 and 2025.

Is there any correlation to success with running bounces, though?

The past two years, premier Brisbane has ranked dead last (and was 17th in 2023 when making the Grand Final).

Richmond has won the flag with the most bounces and Brisbane has won one with the least – all in the past six seasons.

There might be nothing in it, but don't be surprised if you see Hardwick getting itchy in the coaches' box next time a Gold Coast player goes a little too far when bouncing the Sherrin.