THE AFL considered a double-header on the Friday night of the Mother's Day weekend in round six, but the scheduling ultimately proved too difficult to execute the plan.
Collingwood and Geelong will face off at the MCG in a standalone clash on May 8, with six games scheduled for Saturday and two games – Carlton and the Brisbane Lions at Etihad Stadium, and Port Adelaide and West Coast at Adelaide Oval – on the Mother's Day Sunday.
But CEO Gillon McLachlan revealed he was pushing hard for back-to-back Friday night matches, likely featuring Port Adelaide at Adelaide Oval and immediately followed by a game at Patersons Stadium in Perth.
That would have then allowed the AFL to schedule a marquee one-out blockbuster on Mother's Day in keeping with the fixture's configuration.
"It just got too complicated with the broadcasting, ultimately to get that away," McLachlan said at the fixture launch at AFL House on Thursday.
"We had the dialogue. I know Port Adelaide has been keen to have a Friday twilight game at Adelaide Oval and then you'd play a game out of Perth after that.
"I like the thought of that and then having one big standalone game on Mother's Day but we weren't able to pull it off."
The League's contract with broadcasters Channel Seven and Fox Footy in this instance was tough to amend, however McLachlan says he is supportive of potential Friday night double-headers in the future.
"We knew we couldn't get too much further other than thinking it was a good idea after we found out we couldn't get it done because of our contracts," McLachlan said.
"We had a really good look at it but we couldn't get it done."
