- Change was rolled out in Hawks v Swans clash
- Smith lashed out at the change on social media
- He was joined by a chorus of unhappy footy fans
A big-name AFL star has lashed out at a huge change made to the broadcasting of footy games this season that was rolled out in Hawthorn’s huge win over the Sydney Swans on Friday.
Geelong’s prized recruit Bailey Smith has led a chorus of opposition to the new scorecard graphic rolled out in Friday night footy.
Sam Mitchell has hailed his side’s growing resilience as Hawthorn took a step towards stamping themselves as genuine heavyweights in a hard-fought 20-point win over Sydney in the AFL season opener.
The ‘Hollywood Hawks’ got down and dirty as they kicked off their campaign in impressive fashion with the 14.12 (96) to 11.10 (76) victory over last year’s beaten grand finalists at the SCG on Friday night.
But many footy fans, including Bailey, felt they were missing out on the action because of the revised graphic rolled out by Fox Footy.
Disgruntled football supporters believe the new graphic is big and too obtrusive, not centred and raised from the bottom of the screen – taking away from the spectacle.
AFL star Bailey Smith was not happy with the new presentation of AFL games rolled out on Friday night
Smith fumed about the graphic used in the clash between Hawthorn and the Sydney Swans
The Geelong signing wants to see a return to traditional scorecard graphics that are not as intrusive
‘Get this s*** off my screen, why’s it so big?’ Smith posted to Instagram while lying back to watch the clash.
He also posted a scorecard graphic from previous years, which was neatly tucked into the left corner.
‘Bring back this nostalgic beauty,’ he posted.
‘The score graphic at the bottom is terrible?! Thoughts?’ asked one fan.
‘Whoever determined the new score boxes should be sacked … immediately! They are disgusting!’ fumed another.
‘Absolute disaster. They’re trying to copy the NFL instead of proudly continuing what makes AFL our great game,’ posted another.
There appeared to be a mid-game correction, with the score graphic noticably smaller after halftime.
‘Still large but at least it’s centred,’ Smith posted.
Smith was a big-name signing by the Cats after announcing himself as a star with the Bulldogs
AFL fans were also unimpressed with the graphic, wondering why it was so big and not centred
The Hawks showed they could be the real deal in 2025 with a 20-point win over the grand finalists
Will Day was a dominant figure for Hawthorn with 19 disposals and three goals in the first half before the Hawks kicked 25 points clear late in the second term, showcasing the flair that made them last year’s great entertainers.
But the gun midfielder was limited by cramp and stopper James Jordon after the main break, when Hawthorn were forced to grit their teeth and hold off a surging Swans fightback.
Both sides enjoyed four-goal runs as momentum swung in an entertaining contest, which became an arm wrestle when heavy rain fell during the second half.
Hawks skipper James Sicily (20 disposals, eight marks) was brilliant in defence to start with and influential again when swung forward late, kicking the sealer in a three-goals-to-none final term.
