Just a game and three-quarters in to his AFL career, Braydon Preuss was forced to contend with a tricky situation. 

A late convert to the game, the North ruckman was dominating against the Cats in Round 2 when they suddenly stopped nominating a ruckman at stoppages when the ball was in their forward half.

“I didn’t want to grab it and quick-kick it because they would have set up for the quick-kick,” Preuss recalled.

“So I tried to tap it to our blokes or tap it to myself and make another stoppage.”

It was a situation that cast further doubts on the AFL's contentious third man up rule only introduced this season.

In theory, having no third man up at a stoppage makes the game simpler. At least, that seemed to be the plan when the rule change was announced.

Instead, the first three weeks of the season has treated us to a fascinating mix of strategies.

Teams have attempted to exploit the new rule with varying degrees of success.

It’s led to a variety of opinions on the issues. Some say the ruckman is being phased out of the game while others believe having no third man up will ultimately help the big man to become even more influential.

The Cats opt not to nominate a ruckman, leaving Preuss with a clear run at the ball

Geelong's move to have an extra player at ground level instead of using a ruckman won't happen all the time according to star ruckman Todd Goldstein. 

“It’s only going to happen if teams are getting completely smashed in the hit-outs and their ruckmen aren’t giving them much,” Goldstein said.

“So they’ll think, ‘we’ll lose the aerial contest but we’ll win it at ground level.’

“It’ll change for teams from week to week but you will see more of it than ever before.”

North’s stoppage coach, Jarred Moore, believes the ruck tactics will continually evolve.

“If they don’t go up, you’re going to come up with ways to beat that for sure,” Moore said.

“The game evolves. If there’s a certain tactic that people want to go with, there’s always a way to exploit it.”

Looking forward, Preuss predicted a few changes if he recognises the tactic happening again, depending on where the stoppage is on the field.

“If I had my time again I probably would have put it on the boot and gone long or handballed to someone in close.

“It depends where you are on the field. If you’re in the forward line you can grab it and have a shot. It worked (against GWS) once,” Preuss joked, referring to his stunning left foot snap which bounced through at Blundstone Arena.

Goldstein, now in his 11th AFL season, believes the tactics used by opposing sides will shine more focus on the ruckman’s craft.

“If you’re clearly going to get the hit-out, it’s about knowing where you’re going to put it, whether you’re going to grab it and kick it or something else.

“Teams have shown their hand so you’ve got to have something ready, because you can quickly make that an advantage to the team with the ruckman.”

In addition to Geelong’s strategy of not nominating a ruck, the first three weeks of the season has seen Shaun Grigg nominate and then draw a free kick after being blocked away from the ball.

Grigg, left of screen, draws the free kick after being blocked off the contest

Rory Sloane also legitimately contested several ruck contests against Hawthorn in Round 2. It was a game in which the Crows were all over the Hawks.

While admitting there were ‘pros and cons’ to each ruck strategy, Moore still believes the ruckman will hold his importance in the game, forcing opposition midfields into a reactive approach.

“If you’re a dominant ruckman you should remain dominant instead of getting jumped on all the time. It’s got to help the bigger, stronger ruckman," he said.

“If you do have the bigger, stronger ruckman then the other team is trying to stop you. They understand they’re not going to win taps so they’ll have a defensive mindset.”

Both Goldstein and Preuss echoed Moore’s thoughts, with Preuss in particular enjoying the change in rules.

“It’s good not copping shots to the ribs anymore," he said.

“You can have a head-to-head battle with the ruckman and it can bring genuine ruckmen into the game.”

North’s upcoming opponent, the Bulldogs, made a successful habit of using a third man up last season and have been affected by the new rule.

While they’ll likely be a team that explores the different tactics available to them, Goldstein believes each side will have a unique plan.

“You can’t see us or Fremantle for example not nominating," he stated.

“You have to come up with plans and tactics to use your dominant ruckman.

“Teams will adjust. It’s only three weeks in; no-one really knew what effect and what ploys were going to be put in.

“Some teams have shown their hand and now it’s up to the rest of us to work out what’s going to work for us.”

And if teams continue to not nominate a ruckman for stoppages?

“It gives you a clear tap out,” Preuss said.

“You’d take that any day of the week.”