BY BOZZA

With Richmond and Adelaide both favourites in this weekend’s Preliminary Finals, there has been much conjecture as to what would happen if the two teams met in the Grand Final. As the teams wear clash jumpers when they play during the Home and Away season, the potential that may have to do so in the Grand Final as been the subject of much angst between the two supporter groups.

Clearly forgetting that his team had yet to qualify for the Grand Final, Richmond legend Kevin Bartlett has led the charge in opposition to his team being forced to wear a clash jumper. It would seem Bartlett is more concerned with fashion than in the prospect of his team playing in it’s first Premiership decider in 35-years. On his Hungry for Sport program on SEN he has mounted a number of spirited arguments for his team to wear their traditional jumper on Grand Final day. Initially he argued that there was no clash between the two teams jumpers and that neither should be forced into an alternative jumper. Next he argued that Adelaide as a ‘Johnny Comelately’ should be the team to acquiesce before turning his efforts towards cheering for a Geelong victory over Adelaide to avoid a clash altogether.

You can forgive KB for his less than consistent approach to the subject at hand because the AFL has been anything but themselves when dealing with the issue up to this point. Here is the approach the AFL has used to solve the matter in past Grand Finals.

Yep in the four previous occasions the AFL has deemed a jumper clash, we have seen manufactured compromise, and the right of the minor premier or higher ranked side become more or less important dependent on what mood the AFL is in. This slap dash administration on the run approach has now brought us to the position we find ourselves in where a coin toss will now decide it. Is there any wonder everyone is upset at the process.

I would suggest to Adelaide and Richmond fans that if their teams do meet in the Grand Final and one is forced to wear a clash jumper, the pain of this is much less than the long wait in between. Surely fans that have waited 19 and 35 years respectively would be willing to play in the Grand Final in pink with purple polka dots if it gave them a chance to taste Premiership success again. As for the AFL, is there any danger that you can decide upon a policy and stick to it going forward? Much easier for fans to accept something with prior warning than have it sprung upon them at the last minute.

You can listen to Bozza discuss this and much, much more on The Pinch Hitters with Boz and Pav, available for download on Soundcloud and I-Tunes.