Hawks still in hunt for Wallace
03 August 2004
Herald Sun
Mike Sheahan
HAWTHORN is gearing up for a final tilt at Terry Wallace as the battle for his services nears a climax.
Wallace has accepted an invitation to make a full presentation to the Hawks on Thursday, rebutting a report in The Australian yesterday declaring him the next Richmond coach.
"Absolutely nothing's formalised; there's no agreement at all," Wallace told the Herald Sun last night.
"I've got no idea what I'm going to do," he told a caller later on 3AW's Sports Today.
"I was very surprised (by the story). There's been conversations with three clubs (Richmond, Hawthorn and Adelaide); there's probably been a broader conversation with the two Melbourne-based clubs, but there's been no terms or conditions even spoken about at this stage.
"I had a meeting earlier today with Greg Miller and Bryan Wood (members of Richmond's coaching sub-committee), and I hope to be meeting again with Hawthorn later this week."
Wallace, in fact, will front the full board. In a declaration that will encourage his admirers at Hawthorn, he said he had no intention of wasting anyone's time.
Hawthorn's acting chief executive Jason Dunstall said: "Terry's made absolutely no decision; he's in no way committed."
Dunstall said the Wallace presentation would be open to all directors. "I would hope everyone would be there."
Wallace said: "I've had more dealings with Richmond, so I'm probably one meeting ahead, as such, with them. I need to have one more meeting with Hawthorn just to have a full and comprehensive understanding of exactly where they're at. I would say that would put me in a much firmer position to be making a decision."
Despite Adelaide's interest, it is a two-way choice, with Wallace expecting to make his decision early next week.
"I'm not going to play one off against the other. I'll make up my mind which is the right option, then my management would speak privately to that team to see whether terms and conditions can be met."
Wallace, who has spent the past two seasons in the media after seven seasons coaching the Western Bulldogs, can expect an offer for at least three years and probably four.
Richmond's Miller yesterday implied a four-year deal was available at Punt Rd, but Hawthorn also has Wallace as its preferred target and can be expected to construct a similar package.
Any four-year deal would be worth $2.2 million to $2.5 million.
"It's not a money decision," he said. "Of course you want to be recompensed what you need to be recompensed in these things, but it won't be a money decision. I'd rather have all the information lined up and then make a decision straight on an information base, `that's the club I'd like to go to for these reasons'. Then the management (ESP's Craig Kelly) would step in."
He rates the Hawthorn player list slightly better in the short-term, with Richmond more promising in the longer-term. Asked if he wanted the teams to win games and possibly lose priority choices, he said: "I think it's important for the spirit of both football clubs to be competitive."
Wallace was a premiership centreman at Hawthorn. He also played for Richmond before moving to the Western Bulldogs as a player and then a coach.
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