G. Ablett in talks with GC

[moistie]

Rubbish.

Knights is dead right. If Ablett is thinking about GC enough already to go up and hear them out, what does that say about his interests in the upcoming preseason/season?

None. He's a professional athlete. He would still be training and doing everything required of him.

He said that if any Essendon player was doing this then he would be bitterly dissapointed....and so he should be.

No football club should want players who dont want to play for the club...whether its Gary Ablett Jnr, Adam McPhee, Luke Ball or whoever.

They expect loyalty when it comes to contract renewals, yet when it comes to trade week that doesn't count for much. Knights was happy to accept Mark Williams from Hawthorn, wasn't he? He was looking out for himself by going where the contract was biggest. More power to him, I say. Yet we don't hear Knights complaining about that, do we?

Not only are they dealing with adults, they are dealing with professionals. And no matter how much you hate Knights or love Ablett, this is very unprofessional behavior from Gary.

Bollocks. You're saying that Gary should just take what's offered to him by Geelong? Why shouldn't he hear GC17 out in person?

If anything, it's the epitome of professional behaviour. If you're offered a truckload of money with a new organisation you'd want to do your due dilligence before signing and see how professional the outfit truly is in person rather than by proxy.

 

[moistie]

I bet every single Geelong supporter out there feels a little bit betrayed....and with good reason. Even if most of you wont say it. It's not so much the fact that he is talking to them, but that he is doing it now. Doesnt look good for where his mind is at the moment.

So he shouldn't hear their pitch, get it out of the way and make his mind up early rather than letting it fester and it turning into a circus?

If he says he's happy where he is then it gives the club and his manager a whole year to negotiate contract details and the sting is taken out of the media.

If he goes then after the initial frenzy there will be the background media buzz throughout the year but it will be minor compared to the constant questions from the media if he doesn't make any public stance on his future.

 

[UpTheGuts]

I think it will be GAJ or Brad Sewell.

Not neither. Not both

 

[rainman06]

They expect loyalty when it comes to contract renewals, yet when it comes to trade week that doesn't count for much. Knights was happy to accept Mark Williams from Hawthorn, wasn't he? He was looking out for himself by going where the contract was biggest. More power to him, I say. Yet we don't hear Knights complaining about that, do we?

Terrible, terrible comparison.

The Williams discussions were during a little think called trade week. Lists were not settled (except for the rookie draft). Training had not begun. It is completely different.

Bollocks. You're saying that Gary should just take what's offered to him by Geelong? Why shouldn't he hear GC17 out in person?

If anything, it's the epitome of professional behaviour. If you're offered a truckload of money with a new organisation you'd want to do your due dilligence before signing and see how professional the outfit truly is in person rather than by proxy.

Its human nature to be interested in what GC have to say, no doubt. But it is selfish and unprofessional to do it in December 2009 when he is contracted until October 2010...no matter how you apologists try and spin it.

Look at Geelongs responses this morning below......Costa is worried, Balme is all defensive and Cook has been panicked into setting up an immediate counter-offer. Geelong are unsettled by it, so you can stop with all this GAJ love-in crap.

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/a...eelong-teammates/story-e6frf9jf-1225808417320

 

[rainman06]

So he shouldn't hear their pitch, get it out of the way and make his mind up early rather than letting it fester and it turning into a circus?

If he says he's happy where he is then it gives the club and his manager a whole year to negotiate contract details and the sting is taken out of the media.

If he goes then after the initial frenzy there will be the background media buzz throughout the year but it will be minor compared to the constant questions from the media if he doesn't make any public stance on his future.

Make his mind up early?

You think Geelong will be happy if he decides in the coming weeks that he is definitely going to GC yet he continues to play for the entire season? That is unprecedented in this competition.

This story is going to be rolling all throughout the preseason and the season now. Hutchy is going to be obsessed with it. How does that equal anything other than a distraction?

 

[Johnpoland]

Is signing GAJ at this kind of money a good deal for Gold Coast in pure football terms?

I don't think anyone can seriously question that he is in the top handful of players in the AFL, if not in a class of his own.

But I'd think Gold Coast need a leadership figure both on and off the field, someone who will carry the team on field if necessary (and it will be initially, I think) and be the face of football on the Gold Coast the rest of the time.

Maybe he has qualities I miss when I see him on TV, but I don't really see him as that kind of player. Of course he'd improve any team he played in, but I can't help thinking Gold Coast need a Jonathan Brown type of personality (for the sake of picking a name) more, someone to build a team/club around.

Naturally, this is all good publicity for a club which barely exists, having their name linked with GAJ. Even if nothing comes of it, every player in the AFL will be considered as a potential target for Gold Coast.

The only risk I can see is the disappointed reaction if the other AFL clubs can get their acts together successfully and protect their key players and Gold Coast end up with a collection of useful but not star players on what are likely to pretty inflated salaries.

 

[rainman06]

Do you think that if Geelong hadn't picked him up then no one else would have? It amazes me when people say that high profile players owe clubs. It's crap. What did Judd owe West Coast? If they hadn't picked him up do you honestly believe no one else would have.
Lower pick, speculators I would say differently but 1st and 2nd round picks I wouldn't.

Thats funny, because every club and player in the league seems to say that once a player is drafted, they are all one and the same....regardless of what pick they were drafted at.

What did Judd owe West Coast? Tell me this.....how does Judd get to experience the thrill of a premiership without his teammates, the coaches, the administrators?

Plenty of other players were able to show extreme loyalty (Chris Grant for example) without ever having achieved the ultimate success. One would think that a premiership would only make you love your club even more.

 

[Timmy from Thomastown]

Theres no such thing as owing clubs anything. The only thing you owe your club is 100% commitment to fulfilling your contract. Judd didnt owe West Coast when his contract expired and Ablett wont owe Geelong anything when his contract expires. (Its got to be remembered in Judds case the club was in turmoil over Cousins/Gardiner/Fletcher/Kerr/Mainwaring, and the club he left was not the same as the club he started at. Its a bit of a special case.)

If Ablett decides to stay loyal to the Cats or chase the money and to move to the new GC franchise, then good on him either way, but thats a personal choice he has the right to make in the fullness of time.

 

[PowerOfThePussy]

Thats funny, because every club and player in the league seems to say that once a player is drafted, they are all one and the same....regardless of what pick they were drafted at.

What did Judd owe West Coast? Tell me this.....how does Judd get to experience the thrill of a premiership without his teammates, the coaches, the administrators?

Plenty of other players were able to show extreme loyalty (Chris Grant for example) without ever having achieved the ultimate success. One would think that a premiership would only make you love your club even more.

Can't recall too many players being offered 1.5 mil a season before. Whilst it sucks, you can't blame Ablett for taking a look.

I'm as pissed off as the the next Geelong supporter, but what can we do? The rules are setup in such a way that we are pretty much powerless. I'm sure a few paper bags might help, but I'm also sure GC has those bags as well. We just get to bend over and take it, but that's AFL for you.

I gave up long ago trying to argue for a level playing field. It clearly is money driven and they want GC to be successful as quickly as they can, so that's what they'll get, whether it be Ablett, Franklin, Riewoldt or whoever lining up for them. If they're still not successful, the AFL will find a way to help them out some more until they are. We just have to deal with it, as distasteful and unfair as it is.

If Hird was still playing and was offered 2 million a season by a new franchise, do you not think he would take a look at it? Especially when the next best player will be on nowehere near that - you'd be mad not to look at it for your family. I hate it, but it's the AFL's fault, not Gary Ablett's.

 

[TeamHurley]

There is going to be a fair amount of pain in the near future. Plenty of people are ribbing each other now about who is possibly leaving but when it starts happening we are all going to feel the pain.

You would thinkg that the teams at the top of the table are obviously going to be the ones that are targeted as they are most likely to have the salary cap pressure which will give the GC and GWS a bit of leverage.

Geelong, Saints, Dogs, Pies and the Hawks if they get back up there should all be a little worried.

Buddy and Roughead are yet to sign contracts.

 

[hawks_time]

Buddy and Roughead are yet to sign contracts.

I would have thought that the majority of players wait until nearing the end of their contract before re-signing. The GC issue will give their managers plenty to bargain with which I'm not totally comfortable with but we'll wait and see.

 

[Hencho]

I would have thought that the majority of players wait until nearing the end of their contract before re-signing. The GC issue will give their managers plenty to bargain with which I'm not totally comfortable with but we'll wait and see.

The problem with having multiple high profile players out of contract at the end of 2010 is the huge increase in bargaining power they'll each have. Roughhead and Franklin are the perfect example, they'll both be pushing very hard for more money, at some point it'll break and either one of them or another player, say a Jordan Lewis or Brad Sewell type of player may get spat out to accomodate!

It's actually going to be a very interesting part of the season!

 

[Pie eyed]

So he shouldn't hear their pitch, get it out of the way and make his mind up early rather than letting it fester and it turning into a circus?

If he says he's happy where he is then it gives the club and his manager a whole year to negotiate contract details and the sting is taken out of the media.

If he goes then after the initial frenzy there will be the background media buzz throughout the year but it will be minor compared to the constant questions from the media if he doesn't make any public stance on his future.

None. He's a professional athlete. He would still be training and doing everything required of him.


They expect loyalty when it comes to contract renewals, yet when it comes to trade week that doesn't count for much. Knights was happy to accept Mark Williams from Hawthorn, wasn't he? He was looking out for himself by going where the contract was biggest. More power to him, I say. Yet we don't hear Knights complaining about that, do we?


Bollocks. You're saying that Gary should just take what's offered to him by Geelong? Why shouldn't he hear GC17 out in person?

If anything, it's the epitome of professional behaviour. If you're offered a truckload of money with a new organisation you'd want to do your due dilligence before signing and see how professional the outfit truly is in person rather than by proxy.

I tend to agree with everything you say here Moisty.

These things would be a huge issue mid season but this is exactly the time for discussions to take place.

I think, though, that if GAJ does decide to accept the GC offer before next season he should stand out for a year and move straight up there to take on a temporary role until they play in 2011. I know that sounds ridiculous but I can't see how you could have a player n your club who has already committed to another. If the process was open and honest I can't see why there could be any complaints.

 

[DanA]

I tend to agree with everything you say here Moisty.

These things would be a huge issue mid season but this is exactly the time for discussions to take place.

I think, though, that if GAJ does decide to accept the GC offer before next season he should stand out for a year and move straight up there to take on a temporary role until they play in 2011. I know that sounds ridiculous but I can't see how you could have a player n your club who has already committed to another. If the process was open and honest I can't see why there could be any complaints.

Stand out for a year.that's crazy. He's contracted to play for Geelong in 2010 and he's playing for Geelong in 2010. It probably the last year of our "premiership window" and we'd be crazy to let anything hinder that.

 

[Pie eyed]

Stand out for a year.that's crazy. He's contracted to play for Geelong in 2010 and he's playing for Geelong in 2010. It probably the last year of our "premiership window" and we'd be crazy to let anything hinder that.

As I said, sounds rediculous.

If he did sign with, or make a real commitment to GC this pre-season how do you think your club would see it?

I know your losing a very good player.

 

[Pure_Ownage]

As far as i know when it comes to compensation picks they arent in the year that the player is drafted.

In this case it wouldnt be in either the 2 years that GC or GWS entered the competition. They then have 5 years within which to use that pick but they have to nominate which year. They could possibly get a first round pick, and end of first round pick, end of second round pick etc.

In the case of Jnr they would probably get number 1 pick in the draft as compensation. They would also be able to pick which year they wanted it. Now dont get me wrong he's a great player and when you look at the judd deal the eagles basically got pick 3,4 and 20 so thinking to only get 1 pick would seem a little harsh.

But lets also look at it from the other angle, the cats were bloody lucky to get him with only a bloody father/son pick to start with as he would have gone very early if not number 1 in his draft year anyway. So its not as though geelong havent already had a sweet deal out of him.

2 premierships, a brownlow and giving his heart and soul for the club every week for only a friggin father/son pick sounds pretty damned sweet to me, especially if you get the number 1 pick in any draft you bloody well want from 2012-2016.

I hope you're right, in which case the compensation would be less unfair than what I was previously expecting. It'd still be a fair disadvantage though in that you would lose Ablett at the end of 2010 and you realistically couldn't use the draft picks until at least 2012.

For what it's worth, given the Judd deal, I'd want pick 1 + something else in the top 10 (given our affinity with pick 7 that's what I'd like) + a little bit more sweetness and I'd call it fair.

 

[sabre_ac]

Nathan has joined the GC?

Regardless of Gary's loyalty to the cats, family will always come first..The pull to play alongside his brother again will have a massive impact.

I don't think he will leave, but its certainly not mission impossible for GC.

 

[Pie eyed]

Nathan has joined the GC?

Regardless of Gary's loyalty to the cats, family will always come first..The pull to play alongside his brother again will have a massive impact.

I don't think he will leave, but its certainly not mission impossible for GC.

His old man is up there too.
$1.5million a years would be an enormous draw. Judd would be a GC player in a snap if he was made an offer, as would most players.

I reckon he will sign.
Basically sets him up for life.

 

[Collins-Langford-Ayres]

Rumour has it that GAblett enquired whether the GC B&F medal will be named after him when he retires, if he joins them.

 

[DamienRyan]

Um, wasn't the Geelong footy club the only thing that allowed his verging on unemployable father to earn a living while he was growing up? Aren't there stories about club officials needing to take him and his brother home after Senior nicked off from training to go pig shooting? Isn't perverse to say the club owes him for all he's given, when in reality the guys around him at Geelong have given him the chance win the flags that eluded Buckley, Richardson, Harvey, Lockett, and so many other champions? Doesn't he owe them for that? He isn't even our most important player. Over the journey, Scarlett is peerless.

Isn't it extraordinarily out of line for any player to engage in secret dealings with another club when even the coach and the president have gone miles out of their way to encourage an air of full disclosure and honesty? Particularly when his team mates are slogging away at a pre season? No wonder they haven't handed him the captaincy already.

This is different from a homesick Judd leaving an ill disciplined, crumbling West Coast. This is a club that's been there his entire life, it's not just an idle employer. If he leaves, for any sum of money, I'll think very, very little of him.

 

[Pure_Ownage]

Nathan has joined the GC?

Regardless of Gary's loyalty to the cats, family will always come first..The pull to play alongside his brother again will have a massive impact.

I don't think he will leave, but its certainly not mission impossible for GC.

Nathan won't be there in 2011.

In fact I doubt he'll even be there halfway through 2010.

So if Gary does go it won't be because of this.

 

[Pure_Ownage]

I suppose its not all bad news for Geelong if they manage to sign Ablett on a two year deal but agree in principle to trade him to gold coast in 2011 then that would mean that they can receive one of the GC's top picks possibly 2+5 or something along those lines.

Gaining these picks plus the vacant position in midfield left by Ablett will mean some of Geelong's young and upcoming midfielders will get a game time such as Hogan, Christianson and others.

It would be great if the club could re-sign him under an agreement to trade him to the GC, as we'd then get a fair return.

I'd say it's a long shot, but I'm sure the club will use it as a second option (assuming the first, of convincing him to be a cat for life) and we wouldn't be doing the right thing by our members if we didn't try this.

 

[Herne Hill Hammer]

Thats funny, because every club and player in the league seems to say that once a player is drafted, they are all one and the same....regardless of what pick they were drafted at.

What did Judd owe West Coast? Tell me this.....how does Judd get to experience the thrill of a premiership without his teammates, the coaches, the administrators?

Plenty of other players were able to show extreme loyalty (Chris Grant for example) without ever having achieved the ultimate success. One would think that a premiership would only make you love your club even more.

Would West Coast have even made a GF without Judd during the whole season?

Chris Grant was taken with pick 105, a real smoky, the Dogs took a punt on him and he came up trumps for them. It's not like he was a junior that every club was fighting for.

 

[Herne Hill Hammer]

Um, wasn't the Geelong footy club the only thing that allowed his verging on unemployable father to earn a living while he was growing up? Aren't there stories about club officials needing to take him and his brother home after Senior nicked off from training to go pig shooting? Isn't perverse to say the club owes him for all he's given, when in reality the guys around him at Geelong have given him the chance win the flags that eluded Buckley, Richardson, Harvey, Lockett, and so many other champions? Doesn't he owe them for that? He isn't even our most important player. Over the journey, Scarlett is peerless.

Isn't it extraordinarily out of line for any player to engage in secret dealings with another club when even the coach and the president have gone miles out of their way to encourage an air of full disclosure and honesty? Particularly when his team mates are slogging away at a pre season? No wonder they haven't handed him the captaincy already.

This is different from a homesick Judd leaving an ill disciplined, crumbling West Coast. This is a club that's been there his entire life, it's not just an idle employer. If he leaves, for any sum of money, I'll think very, very little of him.

Yes, because a little kid with an irresponsible parent is responsible 20 years down the track for it. He needs to repay the club because they gave his old man a job and 20 years ago when he was 5 someone dropped him off on the way home or took him across the road to the Kardinia Cafe and bought him a pie and drink.

 

[rainman06]

Um, wasn't the Geelong footy club the only thing that allowed his verging on unemployable father to earn a living while he was growing up? Aren't there stories about club officials needing to take him and his brother home after Senior nicked off from training to go pig shooting? Isn't perverse to say the club owes him for all he's given, when in reality the guys around him at Geelong have given him the chance win the flags that eluded Buckley, Richardson, Harvey, Lockett, and so many other champions? Doesn't he owe them for that? He isn't even our most important player. Over the journey, Scarlett is peerless.

Isn't it extraordinarily out of line for any player to engage in secret dealings with another club when even the coach and the president have gone miles out of their way to encourage an air of full disclosure and honesty? Particularly when his team mates are slogging away at a pre season? No wonder they haven't handed him the captaincy already.

This is different from a homesick Judd leaving an ill disciplined, crumbling West Coast. This is a club that's been there his entire life, it's not just an idle employer. If he leaves, for any sum of money, I'll think very, very little of him.

BOOM.

Spot on.