To Draw or Not to Draw?

The 2011 AFL season is barely a month old and we have already witnessed three draws, not since 1921 has this occurred. Is sharing the points a fair result or is it imperative a winner is determined? If so how is the winner determined? Overtime, a penalty shootout type kick-off or a goal count back? These extra-time scenarios all have their merits but if they are ideal for the AFL remains to be seen.

An overtime scenario similar to that of soccer is a possibility and is currently implemented for every final except the Grand Finale. Overtime would consist of two 5 minute halves with a change of ends in-between. After 120 minutes of hard brutality and physicality in a marathon length season stretching 25 games, this could be too demanding. The players are the stars of the show and therefore need to be protected accordingly. Lengthening an already epic season is not the answer. Perhaps a penalty shootout type scenario is the answer?

Similar to a soccer style penalty shootout, teams could be asked to select five players to take a set-shot until a winner is determined. This scenario is ideal in comparison to overtime as players would not be asked to expend their already depleted energy. A shootout is not a fair way to determine a game and the four points. AFL is not only about kicking goals, it includes many different aspects and skills: defence, tackling, marking, physical pressure, the ability to run and pass, winning contested possession, the list is endless. Implementing a penalty shootout would eliminate many aspects of the game that make AFL the outstanding spectacle it is. Accuracy does not make a team better than another, Richmond for example were extremely efficient last year when kicking for goal. They finished 14th and were and still are a long way off being a top eight team. Maybe a goal count back could decide the winner?

In the case of a draw in previous One Day International cricket matches, the winner is determined by wickets lost. If one team had more wickets remaining than the other they were announced the winners. This could be implemented in the AFL; the team who scores more goals is deemed the winner. Obviously this could only occur when the score lines are differing. For example the Grand Final last year, inaccuracy plagued Collingwood in the first Grand Final before they eventually went on to win the replay. Had a goal count back style scenario been implemented, St. Kilda would have been announced winners because they kicked accurately and as a result had more goals. Unlike the previous scenarios no energy would be expended with extra time or shootouts making it energy efficient for players. Again like the shootout scenario, teams are rewarded for accuracy when many other elements are crucial to winning an AFL game. Using this method to determine premiers is also ambitious.

All three scenarios have their merits but coincidently have their detractors, so why not keep the draw? A draw is a unique result in many sports so why not keep it exclusive to the AFL? At the end of the day sharing the points is a better result than losing. Although the protocol for a draw in a Grand Final needs to be reviewed, the answer is not as clear as some may think.