League flags a Tigers opener
RICHMOND expects to kick off its back-to-back title defence in front of its fans as part of the 2021 season opener against Carlton on March 18 at the MCG.
The AFL on Friday announced it would revert to a 22-round season next year following a volatile COVID-hit season that was largely played in Queensland.
AFL boss Gillon McLachlan said the league had settled on March 18 to start the season.
No other games have been revealed.
Richmond did not unfurl its 2019 premiership flag this year because crowds were banned from games in the lead-up to Round 1. It will unfurl its two flags next year.
Crowds are likely to be back next season, with sizes yet to be determined. In cricket, the MCG is expected to host 25,000 people for the Boxing Day Test.
McLachlan said the details of next year’s fixture could be delayed until late February because of the COVID-19 threat.
He said the league did not want to release details now and then have to rip them up closer to the start of the season.
“Our plan and our start date will be 18 March next year with a 22-round season,” he said.
“Standing here today, the South Australian border is closed to multiple states, Western Australia has been closed for many months.
“The discussion we had was the later we can release the fixture, the more certainty we can give our clubs and players and supporters.
“We could put a fixture out slightly later in December but we have borders closed at the moment and three or four months before the season.
“So the conversation is primarily around … what do the clubs think is the latest we could release the fixture to give the most certainty for our footy departments and our supporters.
“That will be ongoing and we haven’t made a decision on when the fixture will be released.”
McLachlan flagged there could be a repeat of this year’s footy frenzy with a flurry of games played over a number of days.
“I know there’s a level of appetite and the players enjoyed that compressed period, which was something that maybe was not expected going in,” he said.
“The players enjoyed it and I think there’s an appetite from the clubs, so we’re having a look at it and no decision’s been made.”
A decision on whether the grand final would be played at day or night is yet to be made.
The AFL is currently not planning for hubs next year, although “there will be contingencies” should they arrive.
“We stand here today having worked through a great collaboration with our clubs, our players, our venues, our supporters to get through this year,” McLachlan said.
“And what it’s taught us is things move fast, and we look to 2021 knowing COVID will still be around and we will have to work through it to an extent.”