PATRICK Dangerfield believes a “slight tweak” of some AFL rules has been good for the game.
And he’s rejected suggestions from some that teams are trying not to lose games instead of trying to win them.
The Geelong star, who is also president of the AFL Players’ Association, says the changes, including the introduction 6-6-6 at centre bounces, has a had a more significant impact than the capping of interchange rotations.
“I think it’s resulted in a far better brand of footy; it’s resulted in closer games and more unpredictability,” Dangerfield said.
“I think the most important thing when you go to a game is that both sides have every chance of winning, and, as a supporter, your team’s always in it.”
That unpredictability was on show on Saturday night, with Dangerfield’s Cats suffering a surprise 16-point loss to the Western Bulldogs.
It was Geelong’s second loss in three games since the bye, but the 2016 Brownlow medallist isn’t too concerned with the Cats’ recent form.
“If you look at in isolation, you’d say “well, we haven’t been great over the last three weeks,” Dangerfield.
“But, at the same time, we’ve played some pretty good footy at times on the weekend – we just weren’t able to kick goals.
“You can look at trends all you like, but I still think we’ve played some good footy.
Round 16 featured some of the least attractive football of the season so far, with many teams happy to take the safe option, leading to stagnant football.
However, Dangerfield dismissed the proposition Geelong was one of those teams.
“I think we’re always attacking in our approach to a game,” Dangerfield said.
“We’re never trying not to lose; we’re always trying to play our brand.
“Not trying to lose is perhaps going away from what you know works well, whether that’s an attacking mindset or a defensive mindset.
“We’re always pretty attacking in the way we play our game, and we’ll continue to do that.”
Twitter: @tom_king79
Email: kingy@geelongbroadcasters.com
