Bingo. Its not contested ball that is the problem. Its the strategy teams use to avoid contested ball. The boring as batsh*t chip kicking that has ruined the game.David Parkin had the best idea - the ball must travel 30 metres - if it doesnt - its not a mark - its play on - hes not piddling around with some 5 metre irrelevant change
The worst problem with the current game - if you are watching a neutral game - and want to be entertained and excited - is the chipping the ball around in the backline
Current Geel team who do that - you put up with that - because thats the team you support . However as a neutral - Hawks in their 3 peat - that chipping the ball around in their backline i did not enjoy one little bit
Now Rich - their current style - it is a far cry from Bill Barrot kicking a 60 metre bullet to Royce Hart - it is way inferior to that - however - they are one of the few clubs who dont feuck around in the backline with that short chip passing rubbish ( which is putrid to watch ) they move the ball swiftly from the backline and take risks - so as a neutral watching that gets a big tick from me
allow marks off only long kicks and you fix the problem. 1 rule change fixes it all.