Before her responsibilities were effectively cut in half, Laura Kane was burdened with the most challenging role in football, spanning everything that was hard and controversial about managing the game. Much of the criticism she copped should have been directed at the people she was directly managing, as well as the people who hired her.
Greg Swann’s arrival at AFL House last Monday came with a sigh of relief. “Swanny’s a ripper” and “Swanny understands clubland” must have been uttered dozens of times on radio, on podcasts and TV this past week. But even with a fraction of Kane’s responsibilities, it remains one of the most demanding jobs in football. Swann is phlegmatic, he’s a pragmatist and (so far) he’s refreshingly free of weasel corporate-speak. Here are a few areas where he can make his mark.
1. Improve the standard of umpiring
As football has become more professional, the umpiring department has not followed suit. There’s never been more umpires on the field, there’s never been more scrutiny on them, and there’s never been more for them to do. Everything is magnified now. We’re watching every game live, on large, high-definition televisions. Every game is replayed to within an inch of itself. But it’s still officiated by part-timers who are barristers, accountants, teachers and public servants. There are clearly issues around depth, and the gap between the best and worst umpires is widening. They need to be better supported, paid, trained, instructed and led. It’s one of the most critical issues the game faces.
2. Simplify and clarify the rules
This is related to the first point. Umpires have to interpret and implement ever-changing and incomprehensible laws. The holding the ball rule is a mess. Ruck free kicks are bewildering. And there are 19 elements of the “stand” rule the poor buggers have to factor in. Swann was hired for his decisiveness and his ability to cut through red tape and he needs to prove his worth here.
3. Shorten the games
Swann was still in his Brisbane polo top when he lamented the length of games. Right now, the quarters are about four minutes too long. The average match length has increased by seven minutes over the past decade, and is up by more than two minutes on last season. There’s lots of fat to trim. A good starting point would be to no longer wait for lumbering ruckmen to arrive to throw ups, and to not call for a score review every five minutes. On that note …
4. Fix the score review system
It has affected finals games. It has cost teams top-eight spots. It has made goal umpires second guess themselves. And it sucks the air out of games. It would work, maybe, if it was used as sparingly as possible. It would work, maybe, if the technology was evenly remotely up to the task. Either invest in proper technology and have proper processes, or don’t use it at all.
5. Give Ken Hinkley his 20 grand back
In a league prone to punishing the most piddling of offences, Hinkley’s $20,000 fine stands out. As his career at Port Adelaide draws to a close, it would be an easy and appropriate act of goodwill to hand it back. For the “won’t someone think of the children” crowd, your child is going to see far more offensive things in every ad break – imbeciles on betting ads, stuffing their face with fried chicken and hocking secondhand goods. Compared with that, Hinkley looked positively statesmanlike. While vaguely on topic, surely Swann and the AFL could give a second thought to the five-year ban for the bloke who sent the text message to Michael Voss? Surely five years is overkill for a stupid but harmless text message.
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