Clubs (and players) that finish at the end of the homeNaway season have a big advantage on the clubs (and players) that have to play an extra month of finals football. Be it surgery recovery time, rest, or just an earlier start at pre-season, it helps lower-ranked teams at the start of the season. It will be interesting to see how GWS and Freo respond to being on the opposite end of that this season.
I’ve often wondered about the cumulative effect of consecutive deep finals runs. Hawthorn has been the exception, but it seems hard for teams to have a really sustained run at finals. I’m only speculating, but I imagine the mental fatigue would be a factor. Players live in a pretty intense bubble. Emotionally, I reckon the more time away from the club the better for the players.
