Bomber blast for Tigers
10 October 2004 Sunday Herald Sun
By JON PIERIK
ESSENDON has launched a blistering attack on Richmond football director Greg Miller over the failed Ty Zantuck deal. Saying the club was annoyed by the general lies that come out during trade week, Bomber recruiting manager Adrian Dodoro reserved his strongest attack for the Richmond boss.
Miller said on 3AW yesterday: "The night before (Thursday) we had a deal that was going to get the Tigers choice nine and it involved Ty going to the Kangaroos, which he seemed at the time happy to do.
"Then Essendon that night and the next morning said: 'We want Ty, we want Ty.'
"As soon as we rang their recruiting guy, he says: 'We are not interested in Ty.'
"This goes on all day. In the meantime, the Kangaroos get frustrated and that deal falls over.
"As we expected, Essendon walk in a couple of minutes to the deadline and we didn't make it in time."
But Dodoro said the Essendon contingent was leaving Optus Oval near the 2pm deadline on Friday when player manager Paul Connors approached them about doing a late trade for Zantuck, who is managed by Anthony McConville.
"We had told them about Tuesday we weren't interested because of the money," Dodoro said.
"We told Anthony McConville we don't want him, send him to the Kangaroos. The money was too much.
"We're annoyed by what's happening," Dodoro said of the reporting of the failure to do a deal.
In the aftermath of trade week, a smiling Miller said he had made a wrong turn in his effort to complete a deal before the deadline and then followed up yesterday with criticism of Essendon over the outcome.
The latest row revives memories of the row following Richmond's pursuit of Bomber midfielder Dean Solomon last year.
http://www.heraldsun.news.com.au/footy/common/story_page/0,8033,11028590%255E19742,00.html
