Riewoldt ‘confident’ on Dusty’s futureAnna Harrington,
FOX SPORTS
March 29, 2017TIGERS star Jack Riewoldt says he’s “confident” gun midfielder Dustin Martin will sign on with Richmond.
Martin is out of contract at the end of the season and is a restricted free agent.
But Riewoldt said he expected to see his teammate in yellow and black for years to come, despite the midfielder putting contract talks on hold.
“I certainly think it’s (the contract speculation) certainly not going to affect Dustin and the way he plays,” Riewoldt said on Fox Footy’s AFL 360.
“I’m confident that Dustin will stay.
“I’m confident he’s going to play some excellent footy for us this year and that the club’s going in the right direction and that he’ll see that as well.
“I’m uncomfortable talking about money because I have nothing to do with Dustin’s contract and I feel uncomfortable talking about other people’s finances.”
Melbourne’s Jordan Lewis said there should be less pressure on Martin to re-sign before the end of the season.
“Any player should have the right to see out his contract then renegotiate,” Lewis said.
“I don’t understand why they have to sign before then. It’s a player’s right, he’s contracted until the end of the year.”
Martin delivered a star performance against the Blues first-up, booting four goals while dominating through the midfield.
But Riewoldt said he was happiest to see the selfless side of his teammate.
“The one thing that I’m extremely proud of with Dusty, is his ability to bring his teammates into the game,” he said.
“I’ve got no doubt that he knew that it was Dan Butler’s first goal when he could’ve run into an open goal and kicked the goal himself. He went out of his way to give Dan the ball.
“My greatest memory of Dustin through his career is I watched him pick his teammates up off the ground 21 times in one corner.
“It just shows the player he is, he is a genuine star of the competition but ... the little things and the things that make him a great teammate, are never lost on him.”
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