Greater Western Sydney Giants chairman Tony Shepherd has suggested holding AFLX tournaments earlier in the pre-season and staging them in December.
Shepherd, who is also chairman of the Sydney Cricket & Sports Ground Trust, never imagined he would see Australian rules played at Allianz Stadium, one of the venues under his charge, which held the third and last of the inaugural AFLX tournaments.
"I didn't (but) I thought it went really well," Shepherd told AAP.
"It needs a little refinement like any new competition but I thought some of the games were outstanding.
'With my SCG hat on, I thought the Swans first game really was very classy and and I think that's an example of how good this AFLX could get.
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However Shepherd said he'd never seen players more exhausted.
"At the end of the round robin, they were out on their legs, so it's fast and furious but I think it will grow.
"I'd probably see us making it a little earlier, maybe in December, give you a bit more of a gap before you come into the main season."
The re-timing would also help with recovery should a player be injured and need to be fit again for the first game of the season proper.
Shepherd said he'd received an endorsement of the fledgling concept from his partner.
"She played it recently and it was her first game of Australian rules," he said.
"She could hardly walk for a week afterwards but it worked out really well. She loved it and she thought it was great."
Given the shortage of ovals capable of hosting Australian rules in Sydney, Shepherd feels it's "a logical use of sports space" to utilise the city's many rectangular grounds.
