The Australian Football League (AFL) has announced changes to its rule interpretations for the 2023 Toyota AFL Premiership Season.
The league aims to simplify the game for officiating, minimize delays, and reduce player exploitation of rules.
One of the major changes is the elimination of the 50m penalty for faking a handball while behind the mark, drawing the opponent off their position. This move was often used by players last season to gain an advantage by tricking their opponent into leaving the mark before play on was called.
Another change is that players must make an immediate decision regarding the 5m protected area, standing the mark or leaving it immediately after being penalized or losing a marking contest.
Lastly, players will no longer receive an alert at the 15-second mark of their set shot, but instead will receive a warning at 25 seconds. Players are allowed 30 seconds to start their set-shot approach.
