The AFL Commission has approved a cap on interchange rotations for the next two years.

During the 2014 and 2015 premiership seasons, a cap of 120 rotations will be placed on each team in each match (not including any changes made at quarter breaks and the use of the substitute).

Collingwood’s interim Director of Football Rodney Eade, who is one of the 11 men on the AFL’s Laws Committee, told collingwoodfc.com.au that the cap is a “good compromise” for all involved.

“I think it’s a good compromise from what from what players and clubs probably wanted,” Eade said.

“It’s about where the game is at right now, to stop any escalation which has been a little bit of a trend in the last seven or eight weeks.

“I think it’s about the average of what the season’s at (the league average was 130 rotations per team per game in the first half of the 2013 season), so I think it’s good. The game’s really healthy at the moment as far as how aesthetic it is and how the game’s played. Just having a cap on where interchanges are at currently is going to maintain that integrity. I think it’s a good decision.”

The Magpies were known to be prominent users of the interchange bench in the four years prior to the introduction of the substitute rule in 2011 and have, like all clubs, used rotations off the bench effectively in the three years since.

But Eade doesn’t believe that the cap will have any major effect on how the game is played or coached.

“I don’t think clubs and players would have worried about that too much. I think there is a limit of efficiency. Maybe if it was left uncapped it will oscillate and it’ll go up higher then it will drop down again. I think there will be a natural ceiling. I don’t think you’ll get to 200 (rotations) because you’ll just get players running off just for the sake of it, so clubs are running through that.

“I don’t think it will escalate too much but in keeping it at a reasonable level, I think the main thing is it’s not changing the game. If it dropped down too low, maybe some people will think that there’s a risk the game would change because of that.”

One impact it will have is the way that players and coaches prepare for the season.

“It will (have an impact on the way clubs prepare for matches), certainly training wise. It will become more of an aerobic game.

“There are a lot of different views and we don’t really know whether it has an impact on injuries either way. The game may slow down, which is what some people want, that’s fine. But you just don’t know how coaches will adjust and maybe it will slow it down too much and aesthetically, does it become not as attractive a game to watch?

“I don’t think it’s going to change much.”