It had a purpose, when there were high interchange rotations, but a league cap on rotations has made the vest redundant.

Melbourne coach Paul Roos is the latest to slam the sub – he says it is “the worst rule ever brought into footy” – and joined a growing chorus for a four-man interchange.

Roos voiced his stance earlier this week after Sydney great Adam Goodes played in the Swans’ twos in the NEAFL to rebuild match fitness rather than start as a sub in the AFL for a second-consecutive week.

Put aside all the debate about whether Goodes, a former North Ballarat Rebel, should have extended his career this year, plus the armchair critics’ opinion on whether he could expect a game on his form anyway.

No player should have to sit on the interchange in a vest waiting and waiting to be called up.

It is not an effective use of resources.

Swapping out the AFL sub rule for an extra, fully accessible player on the interchange allows teams and players much greater flexibility, particularly when it comes to managing player workload.

The 120-rotation cap would still force coaches to think carefully about who is on the field, and for how long, without the frenetic speed and haphazard changeovers of the past.

New Western Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge was one of the first this season to call for the scrapping of the sub. He does not like the look of a player just sitting there.

There is stigma attached with the vest.

What player wants to start in the green – bursting but unable to play – or be the guy pulled off and rendered useless for the remaining play.

Being the sub counts as an AFL game against a player’s name.

But it must feel a little hollow if you keep chalking up games for bit-appearances when you are fit to play.

Pulling on the red vest sends out a similar message to being put in the naughty corner for time-out. Your game is not good enough.

The Victorian Football League, which features AFL-aligned and standalone AFL clubs, mimics the AFL in so many ways. Especially tactically. But it does not have the dreaded vests.

Could the AFL look to the VFL for a possible alternative?

What the VFL does boast is a 23rd-man rule for first-year or TAC Cup-listed players to be fifth man on the interchange.

The rule is great for player development.

A promising young player gets a taste of state league football without taking up a senior spot and without pulling on a red or green vest. They get a taste of intensity and skill required at the next level, and the club can test how the player handles the pressure.

Many AFL clubs use the subs vest to blood young players, but once the sub is activated, that is it – the player is either stuck off the ground or stuck as a bench option, and neither prospect may be best for the team.

AFL clubs could adopt a similar rule to trial rookies or first-year players who are performing well in a second-tier team, such as a club’s VFL arm.

Or the AFL could get a little more creative and form a process for calling on untried senior talent to AFL ranks. This could add weight to recruitment decisions, which are increasingly becoming expensive investment decisions for clubs.

First-year North Ballarat Rooster player Lachlan Cassidy will play as the Roosters’ 23rd man in Werribee this weekend.

This is the second week Cassidy has the honour, having made his VFL debut against Collingwood, but under the rule, he can only be a 23rd man a maximum of three times.

After that, Cassidy can only be selected as a fully fledged Rooster. By then, Cassidy will have his bearing on the demands of VFL football and a benchmark for what he needs to prove in his game to push for selection.

AFL chief executive Gillon McLachlan and football operations general manager Mark Evans maintain the league would monitor the substitution rule through the season and inform clubs of any change to the interchange arrangements, should there be any, before clubs have to make playing-list decisions for 2016.

Just scrap it now and be done with it.

The only value in those vests is an ugly fashion choice.

melanie.whelan@fairfaxmedia.com.au