TOPIC:

Interested to find out what everyone's opinions are on the top 5 finals system. Personally having played at 2 clubs over a few different grades now, I've been lucky to play in quite a few finals series and always found that finishing 1st at the end of the home and away season often didn't then translate into a premiership (especially when a team went bye (QF), win (2nd SF), bye (PF) into a GF appearance. Not that you ever want to lose a game of football let alone a final, I just think having two byes over a 3 week period leading into the biggest game of the year was a disadvantage more than an advantage. Thoughts...?

Ari Gold wrote: Interested to find out what everyone's opinions are on the top 5 finals system. Personally having played at 2 clubs over a few different grades now, I've been lucky to play in quite a few finals series and always found that finishing 1st at the end of the home and away season often didn't then translate into a premiership (especially when a team went bye (QF), win (2nd SF), bye (PF) into a GF appearance. Not that you ever want to lose a game of football let alone a final, I just think having two byes over a 3 week period leading into the biggest game of the year was a disadvantage more than an advantage. Thoughts...?

Same applies in a Final Four if played over four weekends. 1st or 2nd, whoever wins Second Semi, play 2 games in 4 weeks,

If you were gonna run a final four I'd imagine it'd be over 3 weekends like the WAFL finals.

Shouldnt affect many teams in the Ian Dargie Colts as they have had a very interuppted season anyway with 3 teams pulling out throughout the year creating 3 byes. Having said that O/Ridge have played 1 game in a month so they may be a little rusty!!

Gotta be better than the final 6!!! Then again who cares? Love the smell of Finals...Love the fact that we're involved. Bring on the weekend I say!

It wasn't so much supposed to be a debate on whether we like the final 5 concept. I was really trying to gauge more from everyone's experiences in the past whether they found that if the minor premier won their 2nd semi and went straight into a GF whether they thought the byes influenced the eventual GF result for better or worse.

For example.

Your team was undefeated throughout the year, made it straight through to a GF and lost OR your team had injuries late in the season and the byes helped you get everyone relatively healthy and win a flag

Yeah I would prefer to play all the way through to the GF. Having the weeks does a team no favours in my view.

Down in the South a few years back a Resi' team won a Second Semi, on the week off of the Prelim they had a big BBQ piss up instead of going to watch who they would play the following week in the GF.

On GF day they got smashed by 60 points plus in the wet - guess that's why they are Resi's players and coach, nothing to do with a week off from playing though I'm thinking

I reckon playing at this time of year is better than having a bye. Injuries and sore spots dont seem so bad when your playing finals and its all on the line

I too am in agreeance that playing only the one game during the finals can be of a disadvantage. I think it can perhaps create complacency amongst the players as their mindset coming into the game could be 'we have this in the bag'. I think you would want to play at least 2 finals before the big day.