SANFL's bold new out of bounds rule and 50 rotations per game

[Bornadog]

God help us if this happens at AFL level.

Link

THE SANFL has announced bold rule changes for its 2016 season including an interchange cap of just 50 rotations and awarding a free kick against the team that kicks or handballs a ball out of bounds without the ball being touched.


The SANFL has seen a rise in interchange rotations from an average of 34 per game to 90 over the past seven seasons and a fall in average total scoring from 208 points per game in 2006 to just 152 points per game in 2015.


The League's Laws of the Game Committee put forward a proposal to the SA Football Commission to reduce the number of rotations to just 50 per game, including three at each quarter break, which was approved to be introduced in 2016.


SANFL Football general manager Adam Kelly told the League website it was necessary to ease congestion and lift scoring.


"The primary concern and motivation of the Laws of the Game Committee was to address the call to make the game more attractive as a spectacle, which includes the spreading of players on the field to reduce congestion," Kelly said.


The SANFL has decided to award a free kick against the team that kicks or handballs a ball out of bounds without being touched in a bid to lower the number of throw-ins and total stoppages.


Players won't be penalised if they spoil or carry the ball over the line unless the umpire deems the action to be deliberate.


The SANFL had a record number of stoppages per game in 2015 – 108 – and a record number of throw-ins per game, 35.


Kelly said the rule was designed to lower the number of stoppages and discourage teams from playing around the boundary line.


"Through the sample of games that we tracked the occurrence of possession going out of bounds and resulting in a free kick there was on average four occurrences per game," he said.


"This rule will result in [fewer] stoppages, multiplied by the evidence of repeat stoppages," Kelly said.

[Happy Days]

Re: SANFL's bold new out of bounds rule and 50 rotations per game

Wow this is a phenomenally bad idea.

If I were running the Crows or the Power I'm looking to see if I can get into another second-tier comp ASAP.

[Twodogs]

Re: SANFL's bold new out of bounds rule and 50 rotations per game

The first problem I can see is players shepherding the ball out of bounds and stopping opposition players touching it to get a free kick.

[Bornadog]

Re: SANFL's bold new out of bounds rule and 50 rotations per game

The first problem I can see is players shepherding the ball out of bounds and stopping opposition players touching it to get a free kick.

Yep, one rule change leads to another issue.

[LostDoggy]

Re: SANFL's bold new out of bounds rule and 50 rotations per game

The first problem I can see is players shepherding the ball out of bounds and stopping opposition players touching it to get a free kick.

We could always ban shepherding and tackling to counter THAT issue though, further down the line.

[Throughandthrough]

Re: SANFL's bold new out of bounds rule and 50 rotations per game

The first problem I can see is players shepherding the ball out of bounds and stopping opposition players touching it to get a free kick.

That would be rare. It's only a free if out of bounds after a disposal, not a punch, smother, spoil etc

You'd imagine a player would rather get a clean possession if they could. (Rather than try and shepherd it over the line)

The same rule currently applies in the AFL for kick ins from behinds. I can't remember seeing a forward




try and shepherd a kick in over the boundary line.

And there's plenty of Sanfl supporters who would be happy if the two AFL reserves teams did go elsewhere.

[LostDoggy]

Re: SANFL's bold new out of bounds rule and 50 rotations per game

Erm, I'm gonna get howled down but I actually like both of those rule changes. In my opinion, both would lead to a better game.

[boydogs]

Re: SANFL's bold new out of bounds rule and 50 rotations per game

Erm, I'm gonna get howled down but I actually like both of those rule changes. In my opinion, both would lead to a better game.

I think so too. Coaching and tactics are so advanced now that teams will do anything to waste time and break momentum. We don't want to become like the NFL

[Scorlibo]

Re: SANFL's bold new out of bounds rule and 50 rotations per game

I'm against measures put in place to just make players more fatigued (limiting rotations) - I can't see that being good for the game. However, there seems to be merit in lessening stoppages, because it's not just about reducing the amount of time that players have to recover, it's also about reducing the amount of time that teams have to set up 18 man defensive structures. If all out of bounds result in turnovers then it's neither possible for fatigued nor fresh players to set up that way, so players will hold their true positions more often. I can also see teams playing through the corridor more often too, which will always result in more high scoring games. Personally I'd be just as happy to see the game evolve naturally, but I'm someone who'll never fall out of love with it. Some players I've found incredible to watch in heavy traffic - Lenny Hayes and Simon Black for instance owe their champion status to stoppages. But I've heard too many times from people new to the sport that they don't understand the 'scrums'. 'So it's like rugby?' makes me cringe. It would be nice to see some rules trialed in the NAB cup to combat stoppages imo.

[boydogs]

Re: SANFL's bold new out of bounds rule and 50 rotations per game

It would be nice to see some rules trialed in the NAB cup to combat stoppages imo.

It will be interesting to watch how the SANFL changes go at arguably the highest level of footy outside the AFL

[Bornadog]

Re: SANFL's bold new out of bounds rule and 50 rotations per game

It would be nice to see some rules trialed in the NAB cup to combat stoppages imo.

I would be intrigued what rule changes can be trialled - any suggestions?

[Scorlibo]

Re: SANFL's bold new out of bounds rule and 50 rotations per game

I would be intrigued what rule changes can be trialled - any suggestions?

I'd like to see a free kick paid for a kick/handball out of bounds without being touched (like what the SANFL is implementing) PLUS a free kick paid for being in possession of the ball when it goes out of bounds. Those two rules in combination with the deliberate out of bounds rule would dramatically lessen the number of boundary stoppages.

On AFL 360 earlier in the year I heard Nathan Buckley quite emphatically suggest a simplification of the holding the ball rule - if a player is tackled with the ball, pay a free kick. He argued that this would make the game easier to understand for onlookers, umpires and players as well as eliminating stoppages around the ground. I tend to agree, but it would be a gargantuan change and something that would need to be rigorously trialed before being implemented.

[Twodogs]

Re: SANFL's bold new out of bounds rule and 50 rotations per game

I'd like to see a more reliable method of measuring 50 metre penalties. In a game where possesions and metres gained mean everything it's bothered me that we leave it to umpires to guestimate how far 50 metres is.

Are they ever tested? Do they ever check the penalties awarded to see how long they are?

[Webby]

Re: SANFL's bold new out of bounds rule and 50 rotations per game

Interesting.. SANFL always used to pride itself on bucking the trends and being a bit independent. Thought perhaps those days were over post AFL.. Don't know if I'd like our Footscray guys playing to a different set of rules from week to week.. Seems like a recipe for a cringeworthy error to be made at the pointy end of a game due to instinctively unwise, low percentage plays.

[Bornadog]

Re: SANFL's bold new out of bounds rule and 50 rotations per game

I'd like to see a free kick paid for a kick/handball out of bounds without being touched (like what the SANFL is implementing) PLUS a free kick paid for being in possession of the ball when it goes out of bounds. Those two rules in combination with the deliberate out of bounds rule would dramatically lessen the number of boundary stoppages. .

Won't decrease stoppages around the ground, where I believe the most stoppages occur.