Geelong coach Chris Scott’s scathing comments about this season’s wildcard round have been labelled “extraordinary” and reportedly caused the AFL to take action.
In 2026, rather than the top eight progressing straight through to the Finals series, two playoff matches will take place to determine the final two spots — with seventh taking on 10th, and eighth facing ninth.
The move is an attempt to increase the number of teams involved in the Finals, but Scott had a more cynical assessment of its implementation — insisting the motivation is simply financial.
Following Geelong’s one-point loss to Hawthorn, he told Fox Footy’s AFL 360: “See, this is why I shouldn’t do this so close to the game, I speak my mind – which is good for you, and bad for me, generally.
“I tend to think they just made it up. Just threw in a couple more Finals for no good reason except cash.”
In the wake of the comments, journalist Caroline Wilson has revealed they have caught the attention of the AFL — who have contacted Geelong boss Steve Hocking.
Speaking to The Agenda Setters, Wilson said: “It was an extraordinary comment to make. I can tell you that went down like a lead balloon at headquarters. It was a pretty low dig.
“And remember, this is a guy who clashed with an AFL staffer after the qualifying final last year and really quite upset her, about an incident that he wasn’t happy about at a post-match press conference after their big win against Brisbane.
“So, he has lost a few brownie points with the AFL, Chris Scott. I think there’s been conversations today between the AFL and the Geelong CEO Steve Hocking.
“Just bemused — why did he say that?”
The remarks came after Scott’s men ended up on the wrong end of one of the most thrilling games of the season so far, losing 92-91 to Hawthorn with a last-gasp behind.
The result leaves Geelong with a record of 2-2 after they followed up a loss to Gold Coast with back-to-back wins over Fremantle and Adelaide.
