Hawthorn president Jeff Kennett has launched a withering attack on free agency, rejecting the reasons for the historic deal and predicting chaos for the AFL.

Kennett argues that the introduction of free agency into the game will increase the risk of players taking legal action so they can go to the club of their choice.

One of the main reasons for the introduction of the free agency system from late 2012 is that the league wants to avoid litigation.

The outspoken former Victorian premier has posted an open letter to Hawthorn fans on their club website, saying the new arrangement will lead to more rorting.

He has also rubbished the AFL's argument that free agency exists in many other professional sports.

"But they forget one very important point, all the codes they are quoting are commercial operations, they are owned by individuals, or groups of people or businesses," he said.

"AFL football in Australia is a community game, owned by the community, and the AFL's proposal puts our unique game at risk ... of commercial failure by some clubs."

Kennett has also portrayed player managers as the likely villains in the free agency system.

"This is open slather for the managers, you wait `til you see how this bloody plays out," he said on radio station SEN.

"They will play player against player, club against club, it will be uncontrollable.

"They have produced a bowl of spaghetti which is slippery, has no definable ends, and administrators are going to find it increasingly difficult to manage their clubs.

"Where does that lead? The weaker clubs are going to get weaker."

A day after the league and the players' association announced the free agency deal, Kennett has become a notable and vocal opponent.

He says he is far from a lone voice of dissent, claiming other senior people in the game have similar concerns.

But Kennett says too many administrators are compromised because their clubs effectively rely on AFL financial assistance to survive.

Kennett noted that Hawthorn's list manager Chris Pelchen was among AFL club officials who helped devise the new free agency model.

Nevertheless, the Hawks president criticised the league for not presenting the model to club boards for discussion first.

Bizarrely, Kennett also compared the AFL's agreement to British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain.

In 1938, Chamberlain notoriously declared "peace in our time" after a key meeting with German dictator Adolf Hitler.

Less than a year later, Germany invaded Poland to start World War Two.

"The AFL have reacted to pressure - I well remember someone else ... just before my lifetime making the claim 'I've bought (sic) peace in my time'," Kennett said.

"The AFL said yesterday `we've bought peace `til 2016', that's assuming no-one challenges the rules.

"I don't think they've bought peace, I think they've surrendered - the other gentleman never bought peace."

Brought to you by AAP © 2024 AAP