Please Explain: Glenn McFarlane urges Daisy Thomas and Dustin Martin to consider staying put Glenn McFarlane
From: Herald Sun
August 22, 2013 1:18PMDEAR Dusty (Martin) and Daisy (Thomas),
First, let us say, that in coming out of contract with Richmond and Collingwood, you are well within your rights to test the market and get the possible financial deal possible.
You are both outstanding footballers and form key planks of your teams' plans in chasing their next premiership.
So you deserve your fair whack.
...
Let's start with you, Dusty. All season we’ve waited for you to sign on the bottom line, but no signature has been forthcoming. The speculation has continued to grow.
There was the early Richmond offer followed by a push to find some more dollars in the Punt Rd bottom line.
And still no deal, despite assurances from seemingly all and sundry that the negotiations were “very close” and “almost done.”
We understand you are chasing around $600,000 per season – more than $150k up on your current deal - but the Tigers are not willing to go much past the $500k mark.
And the financial wriggle room at Richmond is miniscule, with the salary cap close to the brim.
St Kilda is said to be keen to open the pursestrings on a player such as you, while North Melbourne and Greater Western Sydney have also been linked to your 22-year-old self.
But, the thing that you need to ask yourself is - haven't the Tigers done the right thing by you, at times when you have needed them the most?
Remaining a one-club player might cost you a little bit of cash now, but it might go a long way to getting the most out of his footy prospects and maybe even your future.
It's fair to suggest that Richmond has done everything in its power to maintain the stability around you.
I’m sure even you would admit that you are not the easiest player to handle and club officials and your teammates have been there for you – sometimes on a daily basis – if you need them.
That includes regular lunch and dinner appointments with teammates. And the likes of captain Trent Cotchin and development coach Mark Williams, not to mention senior coach Damien Hardwick, have been ready, willing and able to support you at all times.
For the most part, it has worked.
But if we believe at least a snippet of the scuttlebutt, it wouldn’t take much for it not to work. And shifting clubs, perhaps even shifting states, could put that at some risk.
So, hopefully for the Tigers’ sake, and for your own, you and your manager Ralph Carr come to the conclusion that the risk is not worth taking.
Besides that, Richmond is fast approaching the premiership window, and if you hang around long enough to become a member of the first Tigers’ team to win a flag in more than 30 years, you would go down as one of the immortals.
And that would lead to a financial boon for the club, and long beyond your playing career, for you.
Hopefully you can finalise a new deal to stay at Punt Rd before the finals, so that the distraction can go away.
Just ask Travis Cloke now if his 2012 contract saga affected his form.
...
Anyway, thanks for listening, guys.
We really love watching you both play, but for the reasons outlined, we reckon you are better off staying than chasing the extra coin.
Yours Sincerely,
Glenn McFarlane
http://www.news.com.au/sport/afl/please-explain-glenn-mcfarlane-urges-daisy-thomas-and-dustin-martin-to-consider-staying-put/story-fndv8t7m-1226702085447
