Essendon coach Brad Scott believes the AFL selection rules should be changed to allow clubs to choose 23-man squads instead of the status quo of picking a substitute from the emergencies.
The Bombers pulled a surprise move of naming Dyson Heppell as their sub prior to Sunday’s 13-point win over GWS despite originally selecting the former skipper in their starting side.
North Melbourne coach Alastair Clarkson and Richmond boss Damien Hardwick have already this weekend questioned the current rules of naming subs outside starting teams, with Scott joining them in support of a move to 23-man squads.
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Essendon Bombers Press Conference | 15:58
“Yep, I think it just makes sense,” Scott told reporters after his side’s win over the Giants.
“But having worked at the AFL, I know the lawyers would hate that because they’ve got to re-write the entire rule because the rule is written around 22 players. So they’ve got to change a lot of things.
“At the end of the day, it’s doable to change it and I think it’s just logical. Having to name Trent Cotchin as omitted when he’s not omitted just doesn’t feel right.
“It just creates unnecessary angst right across the board. I think the fans would also like to know who’s in our 23, rather than this guessing game.”
Scott revealed the decision to make Heppell sub was ticked off by the AFL as part of a quirk where Essendon didn’t need to name a player as out because Andrew Phillips didn’t play last week.
“It was where we thought we could get an advantage. It’s a really hard one, I know there’s been some commentary throughout the week around naming a sub and having someone named out,” he said.
“We actually did seek some proactive clarification on that, that we could do what we did. We declared that to the AFL that that was the way we were going to approach it.
“But ultimately in terms of the selection, we felt two rucks was the way to go, and (Sam) Draper and Phillips were both really important.
“We had a situation where Phillips didn’t play last week, so we didn’t have to name our sub out, whereas other teams, if you’re going to make someone sub, you’ve got to name them as omitted.
“We certainly didn’t want to do that with Heppell, but we felt Heppell was the right sub for us this week, because we went with talls at both ends of the ground. That just gave us the flexibility that Dyson can play in multiple positions.”
The Essendon coach conceded Heppell has “had it all in a month,” having now been both subbed out of a game and started as the sub through four contests.
But Scott had nothing but praise for the way the veteran, who finished with 19 disposals against the Giants and had some nice moments, has handled himself throughout.
Stringer: ‘Oh my god, that’s going in!’ | 00:56
“He’s (Heppell) spoken to the players and they’re the rules and we’ve got to play to them and we want the result for the team,” Scott said.
“He’s led the way there. He was really important today, he was really calm and kept the boys focused. I’m aware there’s been some viewpoints and criticism, but he is very, very important to our group with where we are right here, right now.”
Scott also revealed he’d discussed with Heppell throughout the week the possibility of him being the sub.
“I spoke to him throughout the week about some options in terms of whether we played him midfield, back or as a sub, that those were the three things,” the Bombers boss said,
“The way we do it is match committee have all their say, and the sub’s usually left to me to make the final call on that.
“Sometimes I like to just talk to the players about some options and not lock it in until the day before the game.”
