The AFL could be backing away from a cap on interchange rotations, due to come in next season.

League chief executive Andrew Demetriou was adamant in March that a cap would be introduced, despite some fierce opposition.

But according to the AFL website, the commission requested more information after a presentation on Monday from the league’s football operations manager Mark Evans.

Collingwood coaching director Rodney Eade, a new addition to the AFL laws of the game committee, also said on Monday that opinions appear to be changing.

“There was reasonable debate around the table, but nothing animated,” Eade told Fox Footy’s AFL360 about the committee’s latest meeting.

“It was interesting that (AFL game analysis manager) Joel Bowden, who collected a lot of information from the stakeholders, saw it in a different way than what he had previously.

“There was enough information from the physios … the medical association, players association – perhaps the injuries, maybe it’s questionable.

“Is the game in a good state the way it is? Do we actually need more data?”

But Eade said several factors were influencing the discussion about interchange.

“Does it (interchange rotation) increase congestion?,” he said.

“Are players fitter (and) able to make more stoppages?

“Is there too much congestion in the game? And I think that’s an area that’s of some concern to the laws committee and certainly of some concern to the commission.

“That’s certainly something that needs to be thought through.”

The AFL trialled a cap of 80 interchange rotations per team this year in the pre-season, well down on the current game average of around 130.

Several coaches were firmly against the league using the 80 cap during the regular season.

“The fact of the matter is unless people have got amnesia the AFL Commission has already passed the rule, which it said at the end of the year the cap’s coming in,” Demetriou said back in March.

“They wanted to look at this year to see if the actual number of 80 is correct.”