Interchangeable: Dane Swan could play more up forward. Credit:Getty Images Already, however, it's possible to see the homogenisation of player positions to the point that, with the exception of the ruck and perhaps one key position at either end, virtually all might become interchangeable. Is that good for the game or not? Time will tell. But that time is arriving very quickly. One of the most obvious consequences of the interchange cap reduction has already been seen in pre-season with more midfielders given a breather of sorts up forward or down back, or in the case of Collingwood Brownlow medallist Dane Swan, for longer periods still. Will that then have a consequent flow-on effect to normally specialist small forwards who in turn have to spend more time midfield in order to make way for them? Very likely. Hawthorn assistant coach Adem Yze suggested as much even for the Hawks' peerless small forward trio – Luke Breust, Cyril Rioli and Paul Puopolo – when he spoke to SEN on Sunday.

"They'll have to [play in midfield]," he said. "We've tried to do that a little bit and give those forwards a little bit of midfield time over the last couple of years anyway so they're used to it, but because of less rotations they might have to spend more time in there and, in saying that, some of our midfielders may need to spend more time down forward." That means larger midfield contingents and larger forward groups, and, as has been the case for the Hawks since the departure of Lance Franklin and now with a long-term injury to Jarryd Roughead, less reliance upon the traditional power forward. That trend has been going on a while anyway, but it was certainly underlined during the NAB Challenge. In 26 games, a total of 601 goals (including nine-pointers) were kicked. But the percentage kicked by the big men was small indeed. Collingwood's rising star Darcy Moore kicked four goals twice, and Jeremy Cameron, Matthew Pavlich, Drew Petrie and Nathan Vardy all booted four in a game. And that was it, no other key forward in those 26 games managed more than three. The big key forwards' mere existence seems increasingly imperilled. And if that's the case, are the big men down back any safer if traditional forward lines become smaller and match-ups not so obvious? And particularly if the "West Coast Web" exploited so successfully last season by a height-challenged Eagles' backline becomes standard practice among rivals?

All the while as goalkickers get smaller, and defenders less reliant on height and strength and more on mobility and rebound, the midfielders are getting bigger. Geelong's Mark Blicavs at 198 centimetres might be a bit of a freak, but even players such as Nat Fyfe and Marcus Bontompelli are midfield giants by traditional standards. And at 193 centimetres, Riewoldt is shorter than another of the new midfield breed, Carlton's emerging star Patrick Cripps. Crowded forward lines and smarter defence forcing slower, more deliberate ball movement have all impinged on AFL key position players. So why not use those with greater athleticism in roles where they might actually be able to impact a game more? And now the interchange cap reduction and the need to spell midfielders in other parts of the ground might well expedite that process. Which means? Well, the old line about Australian football being a game for all shapes and sizes might not necessarily become redundant. But where on the ground those shapes and sizes ply their trade might well end up being six of one, half-a-dozen the other.