'No premier or Brownlow': AFL legend's radical call for 2020 season

Sports Reporter

Mon, 18 May 2020, 5:51 am·2-min read

Dennis Cometti is pictured after being inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame. — Legendary AFL commentator Dennis Cometti believes the AFL should not award a premiership or Brownlow medal this season. (AAP Image/Michael Dodge)

AFL commentary legend Dennis Cometti believes there should be no premier or Brownlow Medal winner this season as a result of the coronavirus-interrupted season.

The league is set to resume training over the coming weeks, with South Australian and W.A. clubs relocating to the Gold Coast for the short term wth games to be played in 3-4 week blocks.

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While fans are salivating over the return of footy, Cometti believes the interrupted season shouldn’t been seen on the same level as those past.

Speaking on Triple M, Cometti said he would prefer to see a series of ‘exhibition’ matches played.

“I can understand what’s going on here but at the same time I don’t think there should be a premiership or a Brownlow Medal,” he said.

“I just feel strongly about that because this is a standalone world event.

“This isn’t over. Playing says more about Australia’s spirit than it does about a cup or a medal.

“I think they should just drop the idea of it being a competition because it’s so lopsided and so strange. Nobody knows what they are doing in two weeks.

“I don’t think you can have a really serious competition based on what is pretty flimsy ground.”

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The 71-year-old said the disrupted season, as well as the continuing worldwide battle against the coronavirus pandemic, meant the AFL would be better of showcasing what makes the game great.

Cometti said exhibition games pitting the league’s best against one another, with lowered stakes due to the disruption, would be a great way to showcase the skills of players and the unique aspects of Australian rules football to a potentially larger audience.

“Exhibition games would be the way I would describe them,” he said.

“With the best players playing but at the same time these players are going to be finding the surroundings and everything they are doing out of character.

“It’s going to be a tough time for them. Everyone thinks of them as being an elite group simply because of what they have done so far and that it breaks the cycle of what most people are doing… I don’t think that going in they would be that much on the football ball, if you like.”