The AFL has poured cold water on Adelaide coach Brenton Sanderson’s scheduling concerns related to Sunday’s hot fixture in the Sunshine State.
Sanderson was baffled that his side played in Brisbane at 1.10pm on a warm winter’s day that reached 24.6C.
“If you’re going to schedule games up here at this time of year, you’ve got to put them at night. Otherwise you’re going to put players’ health and safety at risk,” Sanderson said.
“For the AFL to constantly preach player safety with the rules, you can’t have a game in these conditions with a reduced interchange cap, as you saw today.”
AFL football operations manager Mark Evans yesterday dismissed Sanderson’s criticism.
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“Certainly it was hotter in Adelaide at the start of the year. Certainly it’s been hotter in the finals series, where people have had six-day breaks and all of those sort of things,” Evans said.
“I don’t think it’s outside the realm of an acceptable limit.
“There’s a lot of things in a fixture. I don’t think you exclude 1.10pm games in Brisbane in the middle of August just because of those things.”
The Crows were one short on the bench after Tom Lynch and Andy Otten were both stretchered off in the opening half, with many of their players suffering cramp in the second half.
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“Every player’s absolutely spent, and you want us to turn up in six days and take on Richmond in a blockbuster game?” Sanderson asked.
Evans said the league recognised Adelaide’s six-day break and that “every effort was made to get them onto a plane that night”.
There was more bad news for Adelaide in the wash-up from the weekend’s game, with utility Andy Otten set for a second knee reconstruction.
Scans yesterday confirmed the 79-game AFL veteran had ruptured the anterior-cruciate ligament in his right knee following an incident in Sunday’s round-20 game against Brisbane at the Gabba.
The Crows said Otten would have a traditional surgery and be out of action for 12 months.
Otten’s knee gave way in a marking contest during the second quarter of Sunday’s game and he was taken from the field on a stretcher.
The 25-year-old ruptured the ACL in his left knee in December 2009 and missed the 2010 season.
“Sadly, I can’t change what has happened, despite really wishing I could,” Otten told the club’s website yesterday.
“I know what is ahead of me and will tackle this setback head on.”
Otten is averaging 11.9 disposals and 3.3 marks in 10 games in 2014 for the seventh-placed Crows after finishing in the top five of the club’s best-and-fairest award in 2013.
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