Players who drop at the knees to draw head-high contact would risk giving away a free kick, and the shot clock would be scrapped for set shots from outside 50, under further rule changes being considered by the AFL for 2027.
The league on Wednesday announced seven rule changes that will be introduced for the 2026 season, but clubs have also been advised of a “watch list” of more potential changes, which will be monitored and debated ahead of the following season.
Dylan Moore is tackled by Jack Sinclair.Credit: Getty Images
The AFL told clubs they are troubled by the habit of players dropping at the knees and lowering their body into a tackle to try to draw a free kick. In part, the aim is to protect players from themselves and stop them from risking concussions by using their heads to draw free kicks.
Under the potential change, a player who collapsed their knees in this fashion would be deemed to have had prior opportunity, and so, once tackled, could give a way a free kick rather than draw one.
The difficulty of finding the right language to draft a new rule, which can be applied as the AFL intends, is one of the problems in making a change.
The AFL on Wednesday changed the rules for next year to consider a shrug in a tackle to be prior opportunity. The proposed change on the watch list would go a step further.
The league declined to comment on the areas being considered for change.
Other potential rule changes on the watch list, according to two industry sources with detailed knowledge of the list, are: