agree 100% bear, in effect if the "top 8" system is used the top side could bomb out in 2 weeks and pick 12th rather than 16th while the 8th placed side could win the league and pick 16th (rather than 9th). I would MUCH rather this than the premier getting 9th pick, even if it's a Steven Bradbury run to the title. Also it would be possible to apply the order in one way (ie including finals) for 2 rounds then the other way (end of season ladder) for the next 4 rounds (and later rounds), but of course I would think most would prefer the simplest solution of all rounds being determined the same way.
+1 I assume the 2017 PSD (96+ picks) could take between 1-2 weeks, so we would need to start drafting by NAB week 3 to finish a week prior to the 2017 season. While the 2016 MSD could be very small or very large, assuming its around 50 picks (3 or so each) we should easily slot it in during the middle part of the June14-July 6 break from the end of Round 12 to the start of Round 16 If people want more rapid-fire then we can always schedule either the MSD or PSD for a "draft night" with 5 minute pick limits per pick.
My thoughts: Ladder position is based on the finishing ladder except for the finals anyway. I don't think where finalists draft should be determined solely by their ladder position and not what happens in the finals because it doesn't make sense to let the grand final winner of the year pick 9th if they finished 8th. They won the league, which is the whole point of it, they don't need more rewards. Doesn't create an incentive to be top by end of H&A fixtures either. If we do a time-limit like 12hrs on picks then there needs to be some pause of it over the night as suggested by Len and Bear because it makes it unfair if someone picks at 8pm or so and the next person has only to 8am the next day. Timezones do matter if not everyone is on the same time which makes it even harder. Don't think we need any sort of added qualifier to auto-picks. They're auto-picks. Don't agree on a MS draft order being sorted first based on Points For. If that is what people want then what's the point of competing against teams before the MSD?
Problem is, that's an entirely subjective singular opinion which can not be as easily defined across the board the same way which teams did better in the finals can.
@anthak Did we get some sort of consensus or preferred option on how the MSD order will be determined? I haven't dug through this thread in detail but a few options have been suggested and supported. I have switched camps myself, from initially supporting a reversed "points for" order to a straight forward reversal of the PSD order. Just throwing it out there given trade period (and auctions) are open and picks in the mix. Having a rough idea on the value of MSD picks might be of help.
my preferences for the 2016 MSD * reverse ladder position (linear) by far the preferred option as it is most consistent with PSD draft order * reverse "points for" position (linear) if absolutely necessary to ignore 2016 performance then 3rd and final choice would be * random selection (ie not based on inaugural draft order) snake rather than linear - can be drawn now