Sportsday Gerard's editorial on 'Overreaction Monday's' (23.03.26)
Mar 23, 2026
A run through early alarm over new rule changes and whether they actually caused PCL or hamstring spikes. A look at preseason soft-tissue patterns and why they often pop up. Discussion of training irregularities, rotation strategies, and a specific high-grade hamstring surgery case. Perspectives on how rule tweaks shape playing styles and injury risk.
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Early Overreactions Repeat The Same Mistakes
- Early panic over rule changes is usually unjustified and repeats past overreactions.
- Gerard Healy compares current hysteria about hamstrings to prior scares over ruck/PCLs and the dead bounce rule that proved overstated.
Soft Tissue Spikes Are A Seasonal Pattern
- Pre-season and early rounds always show a spike in soft-tissue injuries as bodies re-adapt to match intensity.
- Gerard lists multiple recent hamstring and soft-tissue cases (Hugo Relfsmith, Taylor Adams, Liam Jones, Sam Walsh) to show it's not new.
Limit Rotations To Reduce Soft Tissue Risk
- If hamstring issues persist, the AFL should restrict rotations to reduce high-intensity bursts and soft-tissue risk.
- Gerard suggests cutting interchange numbers (he preferred four bench players) to limit rotation-driven speed.