North say they are out of the race for Dusty.
The Dusty mega-deal: Roos out of Martin raceafl.com.au
31 August 2017RICHMOND appears to have finally secured the signature of superstar midfielder Dustin Martin, with the Brownlow Medal favourite set to commit to the club for the next seven years in the richest deal in the club's history.
AFL.com.au was told by North Melbourne on Thursday it was out of the race for Martin's signature.
Martin flew to New Zealand this week to visit his father Shane as a final step in deciding whether to stay with Richmond or cross to the Kangaroos on a more lucrative deal.
The 26-year-old was weighing up a seven-year deal worth around $1.1m a season with the Tigers, or the Kangaroos' offer for $1.5m a year over the same duration.
But on Thursday the Tigers were reported to have upped that offer to $1.3 million a season.
Martin's blockbuster signing ends one of the long-running sagas of the 2017 season that started when the midfielder announced through his management in January he would not be deciding on his future until the end of the season.
A restricted free agent, Martin made it known he wanted to spend the season considering his options, and his manager Ralph Carr has stood firm in not finalising any deal until now.
Martin has put the raging speculation on his future to the side to produce a career-best season that should see him rewarded with a second consecutive Jack Dyer Medal as the Tigers' club champion.
He is also the shortest priced Brownlow Medal favourite in history after main rival Patrick Dangerfield was ruled ineligible, and he leads most main media awards.
The 25-year-old's contract negotiations have been handled this season by his manager Carr and the Tigers' list manager Dan Richardson and football boss Neil Balme.
For more than seven months the group has remained tight-lipped on the state of those negotiations as clubs – most notably North Melbourne – were linked to the explosive midfielder.
Speculation about his future reached fever pitch this week as he flew to New Zealand before returning for Wednesday night's All Australian dinner, where he was tight-lipped.
North Melbourne was an aggressive bidder for both Martin and GWS midfielder Josh Kelly, and the club was reportedly in a position to offer Martin approximately $2m more than the Tigers over the course of seven years.
But Martin spurned that offer to stay at Punt Road Oval in a deal that is likely to see him finish his career with the club that drafted him with pick No.3 in the 2009 NAB AFL Draft.
He has produced a magnificent season that has seen him win 40 possessions in a game twice and average career-high inside 50s (6.2), clearances (6.5) and contested possessions (14.2).
With every starring performance this season his value has grown, forcing Richmond to improve its offer as rivals circled.
Ultimately, however, Martin to remain loyal to the Tigers, who have worked overtime to facilitate regular trips to New Zealand for Martin to visit his deported father.
As coach Damien Hardwick said at the start of the season: "Dustin’s been a great player for the Richmond footy club and the Richmond footy club’s been great for Dustin".
http://www.afl.com.au/news/2017-08-31/the-dusty-deal