RICHMOND says its demotion from the Thursday night of round one is "a one-year arrangement", with the Tigers criticising the decision to put their traditional blockbuster against Carlton on a Saturday afternoon.
The absence of the traditional Thursday night Tigers v Blues clash was one of the major talking points when the AFL released the 2027 round one fixture on Tuesday.
With the MCG undergoing refurbishments following the 150th anniversary cricket Test match between Australia and England on March 11-15, the 2027 season will start with games in Sydney and Perth before Hawthorn will host Brisbane at the MCG on Friday, March 19.
It has seen the Tigers-Blues game moved to 12.35pm on the Saturday afternoon, a timeslot the Tigers say "creates barriers" for its supporters to attend.
Richmond CEO Shane Dunne wants the game to return to the Thursday night slot in 2028.
"We all share the disappointment that our blockbuster Round 1 game against Carlton won't be played in its traditional Thursday night timeslot," Dunne said in a statement.
"Since 2008, this fixture has become one of the marquee events on the AFL calendar, attracting an average crowd of over 80,000, major television audiences and helping launch the football season with the atmosphere only a packed MCG can provide. However, the AFL has been clear that this year's change is solely due to the MCG's availability, and we understand it is a one-year arrangement.
"While that doesn't lessen the frustration felt by our club and supporters, we appreciate the circumstances and look forward to this iconic fixture returning to its traditional Thursday night timeslot next year.
"While this is a one-year arrangement, it's hard to ignore that a 12:35pm Saturday start creates barriers for some of the game's most passionate supporters.
"Regardless of the start time, Round 1 is a special occasion and we know the Tiger Army will turn up in force and help create the atmosphere that has made Richmond v Carlton one of the biggest fixtures on the AFL calendar."
The Richmond v Carlton game has been held on the Thursday night of round one in every season since 2008, except 2014 when the MCG was unavailable in round one - which was split over two weekends - due to cricket. The MCG was reserved for cricket in case Victoria hosted the Sheffield Shield final, but the Vics failed to qualify for the decider altogether, meaning the ground was empty during round one.
Despite the relative lack of success of the two clubs in the past few years, recent Tigers-Blues match-ups in round one have been hard-fought; the past four games have been decided by an average of 5.5 points and drawn an average crowd of 81,500 people.
AFL.com.au's Riley Beveridge says while moving the game allows for six premiership contenders to battle it out to start the season - Sydney v Geelong, Fremantle v Western Bulldogs and Hawthorn v Brisbane - history suggests the Richmond v Carlton clash is still deserving of a big stage.
"What (moving to the Saturday afternoon) does is allow for some more blockbusters (to start the round). There are three massive games before you even get to the traditional round one clash," Beveridge said on AFL Daily.
"I think they'd be a little disappointed. I understand it's not a blockbuster anymore with the teams in their current state ... so it's not two of the better teams in the competition, but they're always close games. They always do spark something and hopefully even though it's not on the Thursday night, that's still the case."
