AFL Industry Rallies Behind Fremantle Coach's Call to Scrap Opening Round
Prominent figures across the Australian Football League are uniting in support of Fremantle Dockers coach Justin Longmuir's vocal opposition to the AFL's Opening Round format. This growing movement follows Fremantle's disappointing season opener, where they surrendered a significant lead to lose against Geelong.
Longmuir's Argument Gains Momentum
After watching his team squander a 33-point quarter-time advantage to ultimately fall by 10 points at GMHBA Stadium, Longmuir articulated a compelling case against the current system. The Dockers faced a Geelong side that had already competed in Opening Round the previous week, giving the Cats what many perceive as an unfair competitive edge.
"I think anyone who has been around football would realize it's an advantage," Longmuir stated emphatically post-game. "There should be no competitive advantage in teams having played a game before they play another team. It just makes so much sense to people in the industry. And we have just got it wrong."
Industry Heavyweights Voice Support
Richmond legend and Channel 7 analyst Matthew Richardson has thrown his considerable weight behind Longmuir's position. "I couldn't agree more with Longmuir's assessment," Richardson declared during a 3AW interview. He characterized Opening Round as feeling "a little bit flat, like it's a soft launch of the season."
Richardson elaborated on the fundamental problem: "There's teams that have already played two games before other teams, like Port Adelaide and West Coast, have even played one. I just don't get it. When you start a season, don't you want to start it with a bang, have every fan group engaged, have every city engaged?"
Former Adelaide captain Rory Sloane echoed these concerns from a player's perspective, highlighting how the current schedule disrupts preparation consistency. "You've got the pre-season games, then you've got a week off before Opening Round. It is very disjointed at the moment," Sloane explained on The Sunday Footy Show.
Statistical Evidence and Expert Analysis
The data since Opening Round's introduction in 2024 appears to support these concerns. In the twelve instances where Opening Round participants have faced non-participants in the subsequent round, the teams with prior competitive experience have secured nine victories against just three losses.
AFLW All Australian Kate McCarthy emphasized the significant gap between practice matches and genuine premiership contests. "It has to be an advantage," McCarthy asserted on The Round So Far. "Can you put that down to the fade-out of Freo? I don't think you can put that all down to them not having played in Opening Round and Geelong having done so, but when you look at the numbers and you look at that evidence... I think anyone in a football program would say it's an advantage."
Proposed Alternatives and Future Considerations
Both Richardson and Sloane suggested modifications rather than complete abandonment of showcasing certain markets. Richardson proposed: "I understand they want to give the northern states something, but surely you can still do that, showcase Brisbane and Sydney in that opening round, but you've just got to have everyone involved."
Sloane offered a similar compromise: "Just go as hard as you can at round one. You can still have a focus on the east coast, pump some games up there, but just make sure everyone is playing."
This collective industry push represents a significant challenge to the AFL's current scheduling approach, with multiple respected voices arguing for greater competitive equity from the season's very beginning.
