AFL fans and commentators were not impressed by the Demons’ late decision to abandon their Indigenous round guernsey last night due to a clash of colours with the Western Bulldogs outfit.
Despite the debacle, Melbourne went on to claim top-of-the-table status with a convincing 28-point win over the Bulldogs.
It was reported the Demons were told weeks ago by the AFL that their predominantly red guernsey was too similar to the Bulldogs’ predominantly blue guernsey.
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This comes after the AFL was slammed just weeks ago for Collingwood and Essendon’s Anzac Day jumpers, which were predominantly black.
The Demons will wear the guernsey next week against the Brisbane Lions as the Sir Doug Nicholls Round is being celebrated over two weeks.
“They’re (Melbourne) not thrilled about it,” the Herald Sun’s Jon Ralph said on Fox Footy during the match.
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“Melbourne had their Indigenous jumper produced and didn’t know who their opponent would be given this floating fixture. It turned out to be the Western Bulldogs.
“They were told a month ago it would be a significant clash with the Dogs’ Indigenous jumper. They appealed that this week again, they said we don’t think it’s a clash, they were again denied permission.
“They’ll wear it next week in the second week of Sir Doug Nicholls Round, but it’s not appreciably worse than the Essendon Collingwood clash with their Anzac Day jumpers.”
Former Brisbane Lions captain Jonathan Brown said such issues would arise given the floating fixture.
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“I guess the problem is because they don‘t announce the fixtures until a few weeks beforehand that the jumper designs are already done, so this year is a unique year and it throws the planning out,” he said.
Social media, however, was not so sympathetic, with a number of posts suggesting the Demons had no reason not to wear their Indigenous guernsey.
Users also weren’t too pleased with their much-anticipated top-of-the-table clash being overshadowed by eerie scenes at Marvel Stadium with no crowds due to COVID-19.
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