COACH Simon Goodwin says negative talk about the state of the game is over the top, but he acknowledges improvements can always be made.

Speaking at AAMI Park on Thursday afternoon, Goodwin said he was open to adjustments, but said the game was far from problematic.  

“Clearly there has been a lot of negative talk about the state of the game and what’s going to happen,” he said.

“There is no question that, as an industry, [we can] look to improve the game.

“I think that’s the reality of it – we should never stand still and just say ‘the game is what it is’. I think we look to improve it at any stage.

“I think there are some levers within the game that we can potentially look at, around prior opportunity and incorrect disposal, and also interchange, if that’s the way they want to open up the game more.

“I think the negative talk is probably a bit overdone. I think the game is still in good shape and it’s still a really contested brand of footy, but there are some small adjustments that can be made. From an officiating perspective that might help on the field.”

Goodwin said strategy and structure hadn’t changed “a great deal” in the past 10 years, but players were “faster, quicker and could cover more distance”.

“There is an increase in rotations, so there are things in the game that have changed, but in terms of the structure and strategy within the game – it hasn’t changed a great deal,” he said.

“I think our players are incredibly skilled, but the decision-making process is actually a lot quicker these days.

“There are more people in a smaller amount of area, but the players are getting pressure quickly, so hence their skill level has to be a lot quicker and their decision-making. The skills of the modern day player are very good.”

Meanwhile, Goodwin said it seemed a while since Etihad Stadium was a “hoodoo” venue for the club, given it has won four of its past five matches at Docklands, including its past three.  

“It’s funny that. It was a hoodoo a while ago, and now we’re playing some pretty strong footy there, and I think that’s part of building a strong footy team,” he said.

“You can play on any oval anywhere and that’s what we’ve tried to do as a club – not worry about where we play and who we play against.

“It’s about how we perform and making sure we maximise becoming a really strong footy team.

“We’re trying to find consistency and we’re trying to find our best footy, but we don’t think we’re too far away.”