AFL: Brisbane's Premiership celebrations continue with players fronting up for local fans after their Grand Final victory over the Geelong Cats.
The centre bounce is dead and one of the AFL coaching fraternity’s biggest pet peeve is no more after the AFL announced two key changes for the 2026 season. The league on Wednesday morning confirmed two changes had been made to the Laws of Australia n Football and AFL Regulations, with both the centre bounce and substitute to be discontinued for next season.
The removal of the sub means clubs will now name 23-player line-ups, with interchange benches to feature five players from next season.WHAT'S GAMBLING REALLY COSTING YOU? Set a deposit limit. For Free and confidential support call 1800 858 858 or visit gamblinghelponline.org.au. Greg Swann, the AFL’s new executive general manager of football performance, said the centre bounce, which has been a trademark of the game for decades, was removed after careful consideration of several factors.“The centre bounce has long been a part of Australian Football tradition, but as the game has evolved, there are several areas which will benefit from allowing umpires to simply throw the ball up at the restart,” Swann said. “Currently, umpire pathways are being narrowed by the requirement of the bounce. It is a difficult skill to execute, and we believe is preventing some of our best umpiring prospects from progressing any further in the AFL pathway despite having elite decision-making skills. “By removing the skill aspect of bouncing the ball, umpires can focus their energy on adjudicating the game and consistency of decision making. “We also anticipate this decision will be safer for umpires and players at the contest and lessen the likelihood of umpire contact at the restart. “The removal of the bounce we predict will also have a positive impact in the reduction of game length and produce a cleaner and fairer ruck contest, two areas we have been monitoring for the past two seasons.Swann also confirmed the removal of the sub would lead to an extended, five-player interchange bench. “We have listened to the feedback from players, the Clubs and the AFLPA to remove the substitute in favour of a fifth interchange player with rotations to remain the same,” he said.
Interchange Benches Elite Decision-Making Skills Football Performance Michael Willson Australia And New Zealand Victoria Interchange Player Melbourne Oceania Sub Rule Pet Peeve Fairer Ruck Contest Pet Hate Geelong Cats Ben Waterworth Grand Tradition Brisbane Lions Key Changes Australia Greg Swann Centre Bounce Five-Player Interchange Bench
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