Garry Lyon and Tim Watson believe the AFL should consider introducing a player loan system.
Players being loaned from one club to another is common practise in world football, allowing added flexibility for both clubs and individual players.
Lyon sighted a specific example where a method to loan players would be useful, suggesting Sydney – who have lost ruckmen Sam Naismith and Callum Sinclair to injury this season – could ask other clubs whether they could borrow a replacement ruckman for the remainder of the year.
“It’s a no-brainer (to introduce player loans),” Lyon said on SEN Breakfast.
“Sydney have got no ruckman, got no forwards, they’ve just lost Josh Kennedy and Isaac Heeney.
“Right now they could look at which ruckman isn’t getting a go (like Paddy Ryder), go to St Kilda and say ‘you couldn’t lend us Paddy Ryder for the rest of the season could you’.”
Waston said the system was commonplace around the world and it made sense for the AFL to at least consider the possibility of introducing it.
“It happens all over the world,” he said.
“I guess we haven’t been able to get our heads around it – the idea of having someone on your list, having three or four ruckmen and not playing one and saying ‘OK, for the next 12 months you can go play (at another side)’.
“Are we grown up and mature enough to do something like that? We’re not doing it … the NRL are doing it.”