Steve Hocking is with the purists - he'd love to see the AFL key forwards take more marks and kick more goals.
But the AFL football operations manager says as the game keeps evolving, rival coaches are keen to "stretch" the ground out and use other paths to goal.
"What would the fans like? What would the purists like? They'd like to see (Geelong's) Tom Hawkins sit at full-forward and take 10 marks, kick five and not leave the goalsquare," Hocking said.
"Potentially the game might come back to that."
Asked if he would like to see that, Hocking replied: "of course I do".
It was also pointed out at a media briefing on Wednesday that last year's grand finalists Adelaide and preliminary finalists GWS had several key forwards in their teams.
But rather than the big full-forwards kicking bags from the goalsquare, it is clear the trend is for top midfielders such as Dustin Martin, Patrick Dangerfield and Nat Fyfe to rotate through attack and try to isolate opposition defenders.
It is a tactic Geelong used to devastating effect twice last season with Dangerfield.
"If you watch the (pre-season), there is clearly some stuff going on at clubs, where they're trying to stretch the ground out," Hocking said.
"I don't think I've seen as many torpedoes in a game ... it's back in vogue.
"I think we'll see players like Martin, Fyfe, Dangerfield playing forward more.
"It will be really interesting to see how the clubs adapt."
Since becoming the AFL football boss late last year, Hocking has made a big impact, quickly.
The former Geelong football boss has overhauled the tribunal system and on Wednesday confirmed that the AFL will set up a competition committee to oversee all its major football decisions.
A key item for the new committee, nicknamed the super group, will be how the game is played.
Ongoing concerns about congestion inevitably fuel a fierce debate around suggestions that players need to be restricted to zones on the ground.
"I would like to see a game that's really pure," Hocking said.
"How do you manage the game and decision making around that, so it's as pure as it can be?
"When I talk about pure, I love going to the football and watching the elite players play to the best of their ability and take the game on.
"They have a real love for the game and they're not becoming robots in the way they play - they're playing with a freedom within the game."
The AFL has already recruited David Rath from Hawthorn to work on game analysis.
Hocking said the league is well down the track in recruiting another person from a club to help Rath.
"We want to get ahead of the game," Hocking said.
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