Fierce player trade storm brews
Mick Malthouse | September 19, 2009
THERE'S a bit of a storm brewing in the AFL and it's got nothing to do with coaches, off-field scandals or Mad Mondays.
From what I am hearing, reading and seeing I reckon that this year you are going to see more players swapping clubs than you have for two decades.
The NRL never surprises me in terms of player movement, the players declare their intentions halfway through the year, play out the rest of the season and then they move. It looks odd to us, but that's the way they do it and it works for them.
In the AFL it is rare for a player to put his hand up before the end of the season and say that they are definitely going into the draft or they want to go to a club of choice - a form of free agency if you like.
I say it is extraordinary because I was talking to AFL operations manager Adrian Anderson on the All-Australian night, and I said to him that he must be pleased that the headlines this year have mainly been about the game.
There have been other times when the big news has little to do with what is happening on the field.
He agreed it has been a relatively quiet period.
However, I can see something building in the next few weeks and it is something I haven't seen for a long time in footy.
It seems the GC17 and the futuristic GWS, that is the Gold Coast and Western Sydney sides, are already having an impact on the game and they haven't even entered the senior competition. Certainly there seems to be something going on that has changed the nature of the way clubs negotiate with players.
I sense there is a reluctance on the players' part to sign their names on the dotted line. They are holding out just at a time when the clubs are very keen to get people locked down.
The 16 clubs going around this year want to make sure there is nobody poaching the talent they have and they want some certainty about their lists for the future.
There are a lot of players talking about moving.
We have already seen Shaun Burgoyne, who is one of the best five or six players at Port Adelaide, put his hand up to move on.
There were rumblings that Danyle Pearce may also want to join him in Melbourne, but he re-signed yesterday with Port for another three years.
I think Mark Williams will be bitterly disappointed by the Burgoyne move. He has backed his team to the hilt by signing on for another couple of years.
At Richmond there is Shane Tuck and Andrew Raines who also want to go and there is no indication from the Tigers that they are trying to keep them.
There is talk that Chris Tarrant wants to come back to Melbourne. And Aaron Sandilands was another whose name has been mentioned a few weeks ago.
Brian Lake looks set to sign with the Western Bulldogs now, but his name was doing the rounds for some time.
It is becoming very evident that the threat of taking the best 17-year-olds out of the draft and sending them to the GC17 has caused a blowback and has a massive effect on the recruitment programs of clubs.
We have been warned the Gold Coast is going to have enormous concessions and believe that the ones for West Sydney are going to be far greater.
Clubs who have young lists are going to be in a better position in the future than those who have older lists, as it may prove a nightmare to find good young talent for many years to come.
There are going to be some clubs in a much better state than others, if you want to find out who they are just look at those players who are over 28 or 29 and look at who the club has in terms of young talent to replace them. If they are top-heavy, they are in trouble.
While I probably would have liked to have had a few more experienced players in our team last weekend - not that it mattered in the end - I can see the benefits for the future in the number of young players we had in the side.
I think we might have had about nine players who were 22 or younger playing. Having that many on the field usually bodes well for the future, but when the future promises a prolonged drought in regards to young talent, it takes on added meaning.
The other thing that will happen and is already starting to happen because of this looming threat, is that experienced players will become more valuable.
You will now see clubs looking about to shore up their lists with ready-made players.
It is going to be a little bit more like the 1970s and 1980s when it comes to trading in experienced players.
This will not disappoint the AFL because this trade period has been relatively quiet recently and the more action there is, the more chance the code has to ward off talk of the need for free agency.
There has always been the threat that somebody could challenge this in court. The AFL will be happy to see a great turnover of players within the ranks to show that there is freedom to move about if players wish to.
Hawthorn has indicated it is prepared to give up draft picks for proven players and the club is mentioned around every player whose name pops up.
The salary cap will leave some disappointed clubs but it does open it up for players to go to a club like Melbourne who are sitting pretty at the moment because they have first pick at the December draft.
What we are seeing now will only be magnified further because there is a suggestion Adelaide's Kurt Tippett is only the tip of the iceberg of players wanting to go to Queensland because it is home. With two sides up there it is going to be a lot easier, especially if one has advantages in the draft.
Adelaide seem resigned to losing Tippett to the Gold Coast, but it begs the question how should they be compensated. The Crows have spent a number of years developing this player, he played a terrific semi-final, but it looks like he will not be signing a new contract.
I think we will see a rush for the revolving doors this year which is totally different to recent years.
Don't get me wrong, I don't think it is a bad thing, I mean you don't want to lose players but I think things have been quite stagnant for a long time.
In modern football there has been a general reluctance for players to leave clubs. It is difficult to move players to another club. Everyone wants to be a lifer. The draft is strong with 18-year-olds, but once you get to the second or third rounds I think this year you will see clubs look at more experienced players as an alternative to the players who are left after GC17 and GWS take the cream.
It could be an interesting few months coming up.
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,26093431-16957,00.html
