Essendon is set to play its final match of the 2021 VFL season against GWS next week, with the AFL announcing an end date for the home-and-away season and reverting the ladder to a match ratio system to determine positions.

It means the Bombers, who are placed 20th and out of finals contention, will end their season in a home game against the Giants.

The AFL conceded it had become impossible to get the competition’s 22 teams to reach the same number of matches for the season, and has reverted the ladder to the match ratio system of determining positions that was in use in the AFL from 1991-93 after the Adelaide Crows were admitted as a 15th team.

It means instead of premiership points, the clubs will be ranked as a percentage of matches won divided by the number of matches played, multiplied by 100.

That decision has created a reshuffle to the ladder, with Williamstown rising from seventh to sixth, Collingwood from ninth to seventh and Werribee from 10th to ninth, while GWS falls from sixth to eighth and Frankston from eighth to 10th.

Although the loss of another round ends the mathematical finals hopes of Carlton and Sandringham, the top 10 remain in contention to make the eight.

The league is planning for all 22 clubs to play in next week’s round 19 as a finale to the home-and-away season that will also give the finalists the opportunity to have a hitout before entering a premiership campaign – lockdown pending.

"The VFL community has shown great resilience, commitment and dedication to explore all options to have matches played during an unprecedented year for football," AFL head of talent pathways and state league competitions Tristan Salter said.
 
"To play 107 games during a COVID-interrupted season with state lockdowns and moving borders has been an incredible achievement by the whole industry.
 
"In balancing all the challenges we face as a collective VFL industry, the match ratio system is the best outcome to provide the best opportunity to put together a start-to-finish finals series and crown a VFL premier in 2021.
 
"We’re hopeful we can play the rebel VFLW Grand Final and VFL Final Series to reward the VFL football-starved community of fans across Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland and celebrate a memorable year of football."

ROUND 19 SCHEDULE

(VENUES, DATES AND TIMES TO BE DETERMINED)

Frankston v Werribee
Williamstown v Northern Bullants
Port Melbourne v Coburg
Essendon v GWS Giants
Sandringham v Geelong
Richmond v Box Hill Hawks
Footscray v Collingwood
North Melbourne v Sydney
Carlton v Casey Demons
Brisbane Lions v Southport
Gold Coast v Aspley
(Still in finals contention)

UPDATED 2021 VFL LADDER