‘I’d be filthy’: League concedes big ARC error; GF change looms for 2027 — AFL Daily

The AFL has conceded its ARC doctor got it wrong in one example from the weekend that’s raised questions of consistency. Plus the AFL grand final is set for a shift in 2027. MORE IN AFL DAILY.

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AFL CONCEDES ARC ERROR AS CONSISTENCY QUESTIONS RAISED

The AFL has conceded its ARC doctor was wrong to send off Tom Edwards despite Essendon’s doctor clearing the forward of concussion.

And an AFL great says he’s be “filthy” if he were in the Bombers camp.

Edwards was ruled out by the AFL’s ARC doctor in the dying minutes of Essendon’s narrow loss to Gold Coast, despite being cleared to keep playing by the Bombers doctor minutes earlier on the interchange.

That came after a disagreement between the two doctors.

“I would classify it as a heated disagreement (between the two doctors),” Seven’s Tom Morris said on Agenda Setters.

“It’s not unusual for two doctors to disagree on something clinical like this. But this was noticed by people around them and there’s no doubt that they were on very different sides of the coin.

“(The AFL) are saying that Essendon was right and the AFL ARC doctor, on this occasion, was wrong, and they will continue to review their processes.”

The new rule for the AFL’s concussion spotters to overrule club doctors and force players off the ground has raised questions of inconsistency.

In Sunday’s clash between Melbourne and Brisbane, Demon Harrison Petty was ruled out of the game after suffering delayed concussion symptoms.

The AFL ARC didn’t intervene in that situation, despite removing Lion Noah Answerth in the same game.

Hawks champion Jordan Lewis called the Edwards situation “bizarre,” suggesting the AFL ARC doctor should only be involved in emergencies.

“I think the ARC is there for a reason. It’s probably to catch the ones that haven’t been seen by the bench,” Lewis argued on Fox Footy’s On the Couch.

“When the doctor has got the player off and did the tests face-to-face and conversed with the player. For the ARC to come over the top and overrule that one, I’d be filthy if I was the Essendon doctors.”

Geelong legend Tom Hawkins took issue with the “length of time” it took to rule out Edwards.

“He came off and got checked, we’ve got to trust the doctor, they’re there for a reason,” Hawkins said on the program.

“They know the players intimately, they know how he behaves and know his behaviour.

“To bring him back off after a period of time. We’ve got this technology, let’s implement it straight away, bring the player off to be checked.

“Do it all at the same time, as opposed to waiting so long to check and/or rule him out.”

AFL CLOSING IN ON OCTOBER GF FOR 2027

An October grand final? It’s looming for 2027.

Seven’s Xander McGuire reports the AFL is in the “latter stages” of confirming an October grand final for next season.

The 2027 fixture is expected to be moved back at least one week due to the MCG hosting the 150th Anniversary Cricket Test between Australia and England from March 11 to 15.

It means that, along with other potential changes to next year’s fixture including a new-look Opening Round, the grand final will be pushed back a week.

“The league’s preferred route, at this stage, to deal with the unavailability of the MCG, is to move the season back by at least one week,” McGuire said.

“The fixture will be finalised in the next couple of weeks, with meetings with key stakeholders to come.”

The last time the AFL Grand Final was played in October was in 2020, due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

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