THE FOOTY SEASON’S TOO LONG, SAYS DANGERFIELD

GEELONG star and AFL Players Association president Patrick Dangerfield has renewed calls to shorten matches as well as the season amid a worrying competition-wide injury crisis on the eve of finals.

Dangerfield said fans were at risk of missing out on seeing some of the best players compete in finals, given growing injury lists, and called for a review into the length of games.

Melbourne’s Jesse Hogan, Collingwood’s Ben Reid, Port Adelaide’s Charlie Dixon and GWS’s Heath Shaw are among players ruled out for the rest of the year after sustaining injuries in Round 21 last weekend.

“I suppose it’s highlighted when you see the best players in the game go down,” Dangerfield said of the mounting injury lists.

“I think it’s been quite concerning because it’s such a demanding game that we have, it’s the longest pre-season in world sport and then the season itself is seriously lengthy. We want our best players playing in finals and unfortunately we’re not going to get that this year.”

Dangerfield said demands on players through the long season and long games was “something that needs to be reviewed” and said fans could benefit.

“Twenty-two games I see as too many anyway but the length of the game I think is a conversation piece that needs to be had,” he said.

The players association has long called for the addition of a second in-season bye.