AFL Football Operations boss Steve Hocking has revealed that potential rule changes could take two or three years to come in, rather than in 2019 as many expect.

The state of the game has been by far the number one discussion point throughout the 2018 season with questions surrounding the immediacy of the changes.

Hocking on SEN Breakfast stated that there is a long, thorough process they must go through before dramatic rule changes can be applied to the game.

“One of the big parts is where can we actually put this out into the public,” said Hocking.

“We’re not talking potentially this happening in 2019.

“It has to go through the competition committee, it’s got to go through the AFL executives, it’s got to get to the commission.

“Having spent 10 months with the commission, they’re super impressive people,” he added.

“There’s no way known on Richard Goyder's watch that he’s just going to pull a lever and go right let all this roll through.

“There’s going to have to be so much work and evidence and also understanding, and everyone’s got to be ready for it.

“It may not be next year, it could be the year after, it could be the year after that.”

Listen to Steve Hocking's full interview on SEN Breakfast in the player below.