Kane Cornes slams Eddie McGuire's 'ridiculous' call to permanently shorten AFL games
Port Adelaide great Kane Cornes has unleashed on Collingwood president Eddie McGuire for a "ridiculous" suggestion to shorten AFL games permanently.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic interrupting the season, the AFL announced that all games in the 2020 season would feature 16-minute quarters as opposed to the customary 20-minute quarters.
McGuire suggested that the change should be made permanent saying: "I don't think you can actually ask people to spend four hours at the football these days going there in the middle of a Saturday afternoon on a weekend".
However, Cornes vehemently disagreed with McGuire's call, stating that some of the game's greatest moments had come late in games.
"To me that was just a ridiculous suggestion," he told the AFL Sunday Footy Show.
Cornes suggested that magic late-game moments like Leo Barry's mark wouldn't happen in shortened games Getty
"It makes no sense. Why would we shorten the game by 20 percent? The likes of Shane Crawford, Robert Harvey, Ben Cousins and Nathan Buckley made a living out of grinding over 120 minutes and doing their best work in red time.
"I don't get it, some of the best moments we've ever had in Grand Finals and some of the most famous moments in the game have come in red time.
"These moments would never have happened in the game if we go with Eddie's theory that he wants the game shortened by 20 percent."
Despite the AFL sticking with the 16-minute quarters this season, due to the opening round being played in such conditions, Cornes suggested that it should revert back to normally-timed games.
"I don't even know why we're shortening the game by 20 percent this year," he said.
Cornes said the popularity of the NFL should be evidence as to why the AFL doesn't need to shorten games Getty
"The thought was that the schedule was going to be flipped about, well it looks largely normal now. Put the game back to what it should be, 20 minutes plus time-on.
"Football doesn't have to compete with Netflix, it doesn't have to compete restaurants, this is live sport."
Cornes compared the AFL to the NFL and explained how American football is an example of how a sporting match can be lengthy and still exciting to watch.
"NFL in America goes for four hours and it's the most popular sport in America," he said.
"Drastic rule changes for the sake of it just because there's a virus makes absolutely no sense."
