By now, I am sure we’ve all heard about the proposed rule changes for the upcoming 2026 AFL season. Of all of them, the changes to ruck contests are the most intriguing.
Already, we have some giving Ross Lyon virtual pats on the back for his recruitment of Tom De Koning, adding the athletic ruckman to the club, whilst retaining the services of Rowan Marshall.
To the naked eye, this looks to be close to an ideal combination, perhaps a rival to the Luke Jackson/Sean Darcy pairing at Freo.
However, what people are not understanding is that whilst ruck contests at the centre bounce… or what was formerly the bounce, are now being weighted in favour of rucks who are able to run and jump at the footy, there still remains a vast number of stoppages around the ground that the big-bodied rucks hold an advantage.
Even with the continued erosion of boundary throw ins, the number of stoppages will see fresh power rucks continuing to be a force in the league.
Time to break down what it means, in general, and what it means for each team.
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