The conservation of seniors has other benefits. The AFL's most experienced teams are Carlton, the Kangaroos, the Western Bulldogs, Essendon and Brisbane. These were among the year's top seven clubs. Compare Anthony Mundine, a relative junior, with 250-game Gary Larson, a strong tackler who personified anonymity in a long career for club, State and country. As the NRL struggles to comprehend low crowds and other downgradings it might lament the loss of the game's characters.
League is a faster, younger man's sport than it was.
It is full of fast, young men who no-one has ever heard of. One of the many lessons the AFL is teaching league is that a game which conserves its past cements its future. This material is subject to copyright and any unauthorised use, copying or mirroring is prohibited.