RICHMOND coach Damien Hardwick has joined the call for the season to be shortened but concedes it's unlikely.
His comments follow a similar call from North Melbourne president James Brayshaw for the season to be reduced to 20 rounds.
Hardwick says the current 22-game season is too long.
"I personally think it is, I don't think there's a sport as harsh and as gruelling as ours that asks our players to do an incredible amount of work," he told reporters on Tuesday.
"We can keep having the argument, but the reality is the 22 games are here to stay.
Hardwick acknowledged broadcasters wouldn't be keen on reducing the number of games.
"I don't think they're going to be too keen to give the games back," he said.
"I think the product is a really good product, it's just how long that product goes for is probably the big one.
"Twenty rounds, that's probably a good result."
Having claimed their biggest scalp of the season over Port Adelaide before their week off, the Tigers will be looking to build on a three-game winning streak when they travel to play West Coast.
Reece Conca and Ben Lennon are expected to be available for selection while Shaun Grigg is likely to play in the VFL.
After failing to maintain the momentum from their 2013 campaign, Hardwick insists there's still more to be gained from this season.
"We'll play the year out accordingly. It's no good preparing for next year, when we're still playing for this year as far as we're concerned," he said.
"We've got to continue to get wins on the board, continue to earn respect of our fans back because we've been really disappointing."
