The Weekly Advertiser Horsham

Plan to secure regional football

- BY COLIN MACGILLIVR­AY

Wimmera-mallee football administra­tors believe a raft of on and off-field rule changes will help ensure the longevity of the game in the region.

With a 2019 season due to start in the next few weeks, Wimmera and Horsham District league clubs have been busy trying to adapt to the changes.

AFL Wimmera-mallee released details of its Future Directions Review in August. The review advocated several changes to participat­ion structures, which football leaders adopted.

The number of junior registrati­ons allowed per team is capped at 25 for both leagues and restrictio­ns are in place on how many games members can play outside their age group.

A 16-a-side rule will be uniform across junior and reserves competitio­ns in both leagues, unless participat­ing clubs agree to field 18 players. Previously only Horsham District juniors and reserves played with 16 players.

AFL Wimmera-mallee regional general manager Bruce Petering said the off-field rule changes would help the game thrive into the future.

He said the contentiou­s junior player cap, which could force large clubs such as Horsham and Horsham Saints to turn away junior players, would be beneficial in the long term.

“With the junior cap, the overall concept was to equalize the playing field across all clubs to keep clubs viable as long as possible,” he said.

“Rather than having a heap of kids going to one or two clubs, the idea is to spread them around if possible.

“We want kids to enjoy their sports, and we’ve found there are kids not getting sufficient playing time.

“It will help build junior cultures at smaller clubs as well.”

Mr Petering said backlash against the junior cap was unfounded.

“If we don’t put measures in place that are going to allow clubs to exist for longer, we are going to have less and less clubs,” he said.

“When you look at it, the Wimmera league has a huge imbalance in junior numbers. And when you look at those clubs that are struggling for numbers and get beaten week in and week out, those kids aren’t having any enjoyment in the game and they’re probably going to leave the game quicker than a cap on junior numbers would do.”

Mr Petering said the 16-a-side rule would also be positive for the region.

“The 16-a-side rule allows people to play with the numbers they’ve actually got,” he said.

“If both clubs have got 18 a side they can agree to play 18 a side, but if they’ve got less than 16 they can play with that as well.

“It means you don’t have to bring up a 12-year-old kid to play in the under-17s to fill out a side.

“It is a bit of a culture shift, but this is to ensure clubs don’t need to just fill positions from anywhere.”

AFL Wimmera-mallee has also hosted a conference to inform coaches across the region about on-field rule changes being introduced by the AFL this season.

Included in the rule changes are the ability to play on instantly from a fullback kick-in without the need for a player to kick it to themselves.

Players manning the mark on a kickin will also be required to stand 10 metres from the top of the goal square.

Players receiving a 50-metre penalty must also be allowed to move without interferen­ce from an opposition player and can play on at any time while the penalty is being measured out. Players will also be allowed more leeway in marking contests and can place their hands on the back of an opponent as long as they do not push their opponent in the back.

The ‘6-6-6’ rule introduced at AFL level, requiring six players to start inside each 50-metre arc and six in the middle, will not be enforced at country level.

“Seeing the JLT Series matches, I think the new rules are having a significan­t impact on the watchabili­ty of the game,” Mr Petering said.

“The scoring and the pace of the game appear to have improved already.

“It’ll be interestin­g to see what its impact in country footy is, because the pace of the game is less anyway, but it will have an impact in scoring, I think.”

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