OLB wrote:degruch wrote:OLB wrote:saintsRrising wrote:
err...you are the one that brought up Marathon Running as an arguement to back up the benefits of "rest".
I realise both sports are entirely different.
Apples with apples OLB.
I think we all agree, sports like soccer, rugby, gridiron, etc. are much better comparisons. How do they approach 'resting'?
However, given there isn't even another AFL comparison, you'd have to conclude that the whole concept is just a trendy ideal. Did we need to rest players en masse last year?
In soccer, players cover an average of 9 kms a game compared to 12-15 for an AFL player. The physical demands of soccer could not even be compared to a game of AFL, because again, unlike footy, players are not getting battered throughout a game.
However, it is extremely common to see soccer clubs rest important players saving them for bigger games, and nobody so much as blinks an eyelid. It's been the case for as long as I can remember.
The AFL season goes for only half a year, yet AFL players and coaches are calling for a shorter season.
Either our players are extremely soft, or they have a legitimate point. I like to think they're not soft, that they do have a legitimate point.
AFL is one of the most physically grueling sports in the world, make no mistake.
True, re: soccer...it's not the best comparison. NRL might be better. I'd be interested to see if there was a case for resting in the NRL, or whether (much like AFL possibly), no-one admits to it there either?
Well, the AFL season proper only goes for half a year, but add pre-season and the odd operation, you can see why there is a call for a shorter season. Perhaps dropping the pre-season comp has some merit.
In any case...I'm still worried about potential drop off in form. However, me being a (bored, cyber-bludging) designer, you being a professional St Kilda analyst (
), Sheeds being a 9000 game veteran, Crawf being a hair model - we're only speculating as to whether it would be an issue, whether resting would be required, etc, etc. It's an interesting concept I don't agree with it on the face of things, but am not 100% opposed to.