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AFL has 'rarely looked as vulnerable' as NRL and State of Origin get massive win in code wars

The NRL has cashed in amid the situation surrounding Toby Bedford and Charlie Cameron.

adam lucius
Contributor
·3-min read

One of the AFL's most influential voices has accused the governing body of giving the NRL a big free kick by attempting to tone down the game's physicality as rugby league's raw brutality went off the charts. Under the headline "As V'Landys and the NRL soared, the AFL has rarely looked as vulnerable", veteran broadcaster Gerard Whateley argued Wednesday night's hostile State of Origin clash was the perfect antidote to the AFL's over-reaction on tackling.

Australian rules players, coaches and fans are angry and mystified over what constitutes a dangerous tackle, accusing the AFL of going too far in its quest to reduce contact. Many claim it is tearing at the fabric of the game.

Wayne Carey, pictured here alongside AFL and NRL players.
Wayne Carey resorted to spruiking State of Origin amid the uproar around AFL tackles. Image: AAP/Getty

The Origin decider didn’t worry about such niceties and technicalities as the two sides belted each other into submission in a game for the ages. The on-field brutality was next level and emotions so high it spilled into a bench-clearing push and shove between two sides which despise each other.

It was compelling and compulsive viewing. NSW's 14-4 win was watched by the biggest television audience in 10 years and came in the same week the AFL fraternity was divided over tackle laws.

GWS forward Toby Bedford and Brisbane's Charlie Cameron were both cleared at the tribunal on procedural technicalities after facing rough conduct charges for tackles that led to rivals suffering concussion. There are fears in Australian rules circles the AFL has gone too far in trying to ensure player safety.

Charlie Cameron and Liam Duggan.
Charlie Cameron was initially suspended three games for his tackle on Liam Duggan. (Photo by Will Russell/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

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Critics claim the crackdown on tackling is taking the physicality out of the game. It promoted Whateley to write on the Radio SEN website: "If you were a conspiracy theorist, you’d swear Peter V’Landys orchestrated the most physically brutal demonstration of rugby league at the exact moment the AFL was vulnerable on such a front.

"(Wednesday night’s) Origin decider didn’t worry about the sizzle…it was base, it was raw and it was punishing. Pummelling tackles, callous high shots, clear-the-benches brawls. Bruised, battered and bloodied combatants.

"To the demographic pining for physicality and combat, the Origin decider put on a game to satisfy the genre. V’Landys must have chuckled to himself as the punishment was dished out. It made the comparison (between the AFL and NRL) unmissable… for better or for worse. That’s probably in the eye of the beholder."

Melbourne Demons coach Simon Goodwin said of the furore: "Clearly the fabric of the game in relation to the tackle is being tested to the highest level right now." North Melbourne legend Wayne Carey even resorted to spruiking State of Origin in another massive blow to the AFL.