Outgoing AFL Commission chairman Mike Fitzpatrick says his one regret in his decade-long tenure is not being able to reduce interchange numbers to a "sensible" level.
After 14 years on the commission and 10 as chairman, Fitzpatrick has handed the reins to businessman Richard Goyder, saying it was "a good time to go".
More AFL Real Footy Videos
AFLW plays of the round
Jen McCormick snaps a ripper as Adelaide see off the Doggies, Mo Hope kicks her first but the Dees take the points, the Blues yet to be beaten and Tayla Harris will be a superstar.
Goyder, the managing director of Wesfarmers, will take over on April 4.
Fitzpatrick listed the league's new TV rights deal and overall national expansion as his finest achievements, but conceded the issue of interchange remained a problem.
![AFL CEO Gillon McLachlan with Mike Fitzpatrick after the AFL Commission chairman announced he was stepping down.](/web/20170217154452im_/http://www.theage.com.au/content/dam/images/g/u/d/c/7/2/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gudist.png/1487138182014.jpg)
"Probably the one thing I would have really liked to kill is interchange, or at least get it down to a sensible number," he said on Wednesday. "We've got the cap in but we haven't quite got it to a level that would be sensible.
"There are processes; we've got a rules committee. When I first came on we made sure we put in those processes and they have to be respected.
"Even if you're the chairman or chief executive, you don't necessarily get what you want."
Interchange has been widely debated in recent years, particularly in conjunction with congestion and the aesthetics of the game.
The league initially introduced an interchange cap of 120, before reducing it to 90 before the start of the 2016 season.
But Fitzpatrick would like that number to be significantly reduced.
"I think something around 30-40 would make sense."
The comments come as Fairfax Media revealed the league had conducted secret trials at several intraclub matches in the pre-season, involving both zones and 16-per-side.
Mark Evans and his football department will analyse GPS data and interview players and coaches to gather feedback for future reference.
Continuing to reduce the cap on interchange – which is constantly being publicly pushed by Richmond legend and Laws of the Game committee member Kevin Bartlett – would be another way to attempt to reduce congestion.
While Fitzpatrick listed the interchange as a small regret, he said there were bigger issues facing the game in the next decade, including drugs and gambling.
"I think the overwhelming issue for Australian Rules is the competition from the other sports and we have to keep making the game attractive as a spectacle so that people keep going to game and so that people watch it on TV," he said.
"We're going to have international sports like soccer work very hard to unseat us as the No.1 code in Australia and that's the big challenge that I think we've got going forward."
Fitzpatrick made the point that his replacement Goyder – who lives in Western Australia – will be the first AFL Commission chairman to live outside of Victoria, something he's confident won't be a concern.
Tasmania was a hot topic during Fitzpatrick's tenure, particularly when Sydney and Queensland were given second clubs during expansion.
The outgoing chairman was bullish about his decision-making surrounding the most southern state, stating there were problems that hadn't yet been rectified.
"We endeavoured a while ago to have one side in Tasmania rather than two, and that's what we've been seeking to do.
"At the moment, in many ways the difficulty is the north/south issue … and that has to be resolved before I think Tasmania can have a side."
Fitzpatrick finished by praising McLachlan, particularly for his work in launching AFLW.
"The initiative that Gill's taken, and he had to bring … the commission were right behind him but not quite in 2017 … and the effort the administration has put into getting that right; this all hasn't happened by accident it's been a very good effort and execution."