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AFLX rules for 2019 revealed

Introduction of Gatorade game changers to make for frantic finishes.

Published by
Hayden Tilbrook

The AFL have announced the rules for this year’s edition of the AFLX preseason tournament.

In 2019, the addition of a ‘Gatorade game changer’ will make for exciting conclusions to matches.

Each side will have the ability to nominate one player as their game changer, with any score from that player worth double during the final five minutes of the match.

This will see behinds from the game changer worth two points, goals yielding 12 points and a super goal worth 20, giving the game changer the ability to effect large scoring swings in an instant.

Sides will be given a thirty second period where play will stop for game changers to get into position with five minutes remaining.

Super goal scoring has been slightly altered for 2019 and are now scored when the ball is kicked from behind the launch zone, with the super goal still being paid if an attacking player marks the kick within the 15 metre forward zone.

Meanwhile, players will have a shortened ten second shot clock when lining up for goal, and the ball will return to the middle of the ground for a ball up after a goal is scored.

The ‘last touch’ rule will return, with teams taking possession soccer-style from any opposition disposal or touch that goes over the boundary, on the full or not.

Players will have the ability to play on from an out of bounds possession and can now run an extended 20 metres without being required to take a bounce.

In addition to the introduction of player-captains for Team Rampage, Team Flyers, Team Bolts and All-Indigenous side Team Deadly, none of the AFLX teams will have coaches, but instead high performance staff from AFL clubs to help with rotations and managing players.

The team captains are set to select their teams from a pool of 100 players on Wednesday February 6, via a nationally broadcast live draft.

Each team will compile 14 players, including the captains and vice captains.

Team captains are:

Team Rampage

Jack Riewoldt (c), Patrick Cripps (vc)

Team Bolts

Patrick Dangerfield (c), Luke Hodge (vc)

Team Flyers

Nat Fyfe (c), Marcus Bontempelli (vc)

Team Deadly

Eddie Betts (c), Shaun Burgoyne (vc)

The tournament will feature a round-robin format of games with two ten-minute halves, with the top two teams from the tournament playing in a Grand Final.

The AFLX tournament will be held at Marvel Stadium on Friday February 22 at 7pm.

Published by
Hayden Tilbrook