07-23-2024, 05:13 AM
(07-23-2024, 03:28 AM)Thryleon link Wrote:lp
It's as simple as. The 1st team will play home vs the 4th team. The 2nd team will play home vs the 3rd team.
The same is true of 5th vs 8th and 6th vs 7th.
You can put hypotheticals around it, but if the season was called and we 3rd instead of 2nd, the G will host Geelongs game vs Port and that's that.
The 8 isn't set but I can only see essendon or Port falling out in favour of the doggies, hawthorn or Melbourne at this stage which generally means it won't be us at the G if we don't finish top 2.
That's the bottom line Thry.
If there are four Victorian teams at 1, 2, 5 and 6, we get four games at the MCG. If, for whatever reason, games have to be played on the same day, it can be MCG and Docklands, or Kardinia Park if Geelong is one of those teams. If interstate teams finish at 1, 2, 5 and 6, there'll be no game in Melbourne in the first week of the finals, unless there's an issue with venue availability. The AFL has finals contracts with the major interstate stadiums so if the Suns were entitled to a home final, it would be at the Gabba rather than Carrara. Similarly, GWS would play at the SCG rather than Homebush.
The only time the AFL could exercise "discretion" with "home games" is if the ten games in five seasons requirement wasn't going to be met - and that's a rolling five years. I suspect that the AFL and MCC would negotiate a compromise rather that robbing an interstate team of their home final. As there were five MCG finals in 2023, the AFL only has to have another five finals there by 2027.
“Why don’t you knock it off with them negative waves? Why don’t you dig how beautiful it is out here? Why don’t you say something righteous and hopeful for a change?” Oddball