We seem to have finally got the rebuild right. Seems we are cursed and we are thrown a curve ball that one of our top 2-3 future stars wants to be shopped around for best offer. Not to mention the fact that our Premiership window will be minutely small before GC and GWS start to peak. We won't have a window when they do their 2nd rebuild.
The club has as big decision to make with two options of managing the list to push a tilt at the premiership.
Do we:
a) Go for a premiership tilt and try and inject some experience and quality into the list and sacrifice some youth/future stars to push for a flag in the next 2 years.
or
b) Continue on our course and try to mix it with the big expansion clubs when they peak.
I've always thought to be going on the option B line but with Dusty wanting to be shopped around and the fact that our salary cap doesn't seem to have a lot of give I'm not sure which is the best way. I hope the club do.
Its seems very 'RICHMOND' to throw out the long term plan and go for a short term tilt but with Dusty being shopped around would it be better for going for someone say a 26-28 year old gun like a Ryan Griffen? Trade someone like Conca and pick 12 to WCE for say someone like Josh Kennedy?* Insert your own trade that includes trading out our youth for older players who are of higher quality now but only have so many years left in the system. This bringing out premiership window forward to compete with the top 4 over the next 2 years before GC and GWS come marching in..
I've hated the short term fixes but maybe its worth looking at as I'm not so sure sending Dustin up to GWS for pick 1 or to Melbourne for pick 2 really helps us much when that player would be 3 years younger than the Gold Coast top end talent.
Should we trade out our youth along with Dusty and get in players at their peak, or to we try and replace Dusty with quality youth and look to compete with GC and GWS when they are peaking. Food for thought Brett Deledio will be 30 when Tom Boyd is 22, if we go down that road. Will our talent be to far spread in terms of experience and age groups that we will lose quality players before some of our younger quality matures? Thoughts?
