RICHMOND HOLDING FIRM AS SOLDO AND HIS MANAGEMENT PUSH FOR PORT ADELAIDE MOVELachlan Geleit
SEN
16 October 2023SEN news breakers Tom Morris and Sam Edmund expect the potential Ivan Soldo to Port Adelaide trade to continue developing over the next couple of days.
Morris says that the Richmond ruckman, who has one year remaining on his contract at Punt Road, has pushed further for a move to Alberton across the weekend.
Edmund confirmed that Port Adelaide wants the player and that Soldo wants to move to the club, but Richmond is currently holding form.
The duo discussed where discussions over the future of the 27-year-old premiership player sit and attempted to shine a light on the dealings and major players behind the scenes of the touted move.
Morris: “I think this is the developing story over the next couple of days now.
“It's been bubbling away for a while, and it's taken some further steps along on the weekend.”
Edmund: “I'll tell you what I've heard, and you might be able to flesh it out, put a bit more jam in the donut so to speak.
“We know Port Adelaide are after him. We know that we know that he wants to go to Port Adelaide. We know that Richmond are holding firm.
“But how much lingering - if I can call it - discontent maybe, can we read into the fact that that it motivates Ivan Soldo? If you rewind 12 months, he nearly went to GWS. He went up there, he toured, he did the medical.
“Then he had two years to go. Now he's got one year to go. How much discontent is there lingering in the Ivan Soldo camp from last year's failed move.”
Morris: “It exists. It's there. Only Ivan Soldo would be able to answer to what degree it's leading to him wanting out now.
“But there's been developments over the weekend whereby he and his manager Peter Lenton have spoken to Blair Hartley (general manager of football talent) at Richmond, and they are trying to push him to Port Adelaide. But it's not getting done because Richmond is holding firm.
“The Tigers are saying, ‘You're a contracted player’, he’s saying, ‘I was a contracted player last year and you tried to push me to the Giants, and I was open to it because you wanted me to be’.
“The Giants said no for two reasons. One was money, the second was they were not sure that his knee would be able to hold up.
“In the end, it proved to be the right call given how well Kieren Briggs played this year.”
Edmund: “He's on somewhere around $400k to $450k a season.”
Morris: “The Ivan Soldo to Port Adelaide trade is something that Port has been trying to push for a while.
“But because he's contracted - a bit like Adelaide with Harrison Petty - the player needs to be really forceful.
“I'm told over the last 48 hours the player and his manager have been more forceful. But even then, they can be as forceful as they want.
“If Blair Hartley and Adem Yze are saying no, that's it.”
Soldo has played 57 games for the Tigers since making his debut in the 2017 season.
https://www.sen.com.au/news/2023/10/16/richmond-holding-firm-as-soldo-and-his-management-push-for-port-adelaide/
