MCC dispute resolved

[Snowy]

An in-principle deal has been struck and is effective from this season. This should suit Adelaide or any other interstate team which earns the right to host a preliminary final. The source is tonight's news and both parties were interviewed and confirmed it.

[Charlie]

Excellent news for football in general.

Now, we have to finish second.

[dawson]

This is fine but the scheduling of the Prelim Finals is also a big factor.

One should be on Saturday afternoon and one should be on Saturday night. Or Plan B would be have one on Friday night and one on Saturday afternoon.

The AFL sabotaged the Lions last year by forcing them to travel and then forcing them to play on Saturday night. They returned to Brisbane on Sunday afternoon by which time, Port had already had 1.5 days to get ready.

The Lions are still seething about this and will most likely never forgive the AFL about it.

[robbieando]

Originally posted by dawson
This is fine but the scheduling of the Prelim Finals is also a big factor.

One should be on Saturday afternoon and one should be on Saturday night. Or Plan B would be have one on Friday night and one on Saturday afternoon.

The AFL sabotaged the Lions last year by forcing them to travel and then forcing them to play on Saturday night. They returned to Brisbane on Sunday afternoon by which time, Port had already had 1.5 days to get ready.

The Lions are still seething about this and will most likely never forgive the AFL about it.

TV ratings will see that the AFL cave in to two night prelim finals, but your right the Prelims should be on the same day thus giving no side an extra day or so to prepare for the biggest game for the year.

[cheersquadsteve]

well up untill last year the case was one match saturday on sat nite, it seems only fair

[ROK Lobster]

Originally posted by cheersquadsteve
well up untill last year the case was one match saturday on sat nite, it seems only fair

One word: television

[Bear]

Resolved???

Not sure. Read this excerpt from the paper:

[The AFL also wanted the present "banking" of finals in the first two weeks of September to be extended from a rolling six games over three years to 10 games over five years.]

This means there is still some compromise and the potential to be screwed down the track... We need a completely uncompromised finals system, free from any restrictions and banking.

[Thunder Shaker]

The banking system is not the best idea.

The whole point of the finals banking and preliminary final rule is to provide revenue to the MCC so that the MCC can service their loans on the stands, and to provide the members of the MCC with quality games to attend.

To ensure that the MCC gets the revenue it needs, the AFL should guarantee revenue to the MCC. If the AFL cannot schedule a final at the MCG, the AFL should pay the MCC an agreed sum of money. Conversely, if the AFL can schedule additional finals at the MCG, the extra final should be treated as a credit against future payments.

Mathematically, the MCG would host an average of 1.25 preliminary finals per year.* The AFL should not need to guarantee preliminary finals at the MCG, nor for that matter finals of any kind. Provided the non-Victorian clubs do not dominate for non-mathematical reasons, the MCG should easily be able to host the required number of finals over the lifetime of the contract.

---

* V=Victorian, I=Interstate
V-V = 10 x 9 / 2 = 45 possible pairings, 2 finals
V-I = 10 x 6 = 60 possible pairings, 1 final
I-I = 6 x 5 / 2 = 15 possible pairings, no final
Sum = 150 finals, 120 pairings.

[giant]

Originally posted by Bear
Resolved???

Not sure. Read this excerpt from the paper:

[The AFL also wanted the present "banking" of finals in the first two weeks of September to be extended from a rolling six games over three years to 10 games over five years.]

This means there is still some compromise and the potential to be screwed down the track... We need a completely uncompromised finals system, free from any restrictions and banking.

If this is right they are still counting on the Vic-based teams re-establishing the "normal" world. Tuff call - the interstate teams look stronger than ever & look to cope with travelling much better than the Vic teams.

As you say, they are prob just delaying the pain.

[Mike_B]

I read somewhere the MCC would consider giving up the PF condition if they were to get an even biiger number of the top drawing H&A games meaning the revenue lost from the PF would be made up from 2 or 3 more big drawing games played there each year.