Mid-Season Trades - a Waste of Time?

[Lavender Bushranger]

Whilst I'm a fiend for most American sports - I'm always cautious when we try to emulate or copy them.

There are so many cultural differences (in both a sporting and societal sense) that render many of the cool things that they do over there, completely unfeasible or impractical here.

Relocating teams or creating new ones to 'capture' a suburb or city is a very different prospect here than over there.

Without trotting out a bunch of other examples, I'll get straight to the point...

Whilst the Mid-Season Trades in the NBA and the MLB are fine, great even - it would largely be a waste of time in AFL footy.

Hearing the footy media regurgitate the narrative that "<insert player name>could go to <insert club name> and they'd catapult to flag favourites straight away" makes me shake my head.

If only it were so simple to put a random player in a team and see them immediately fit in seamlessly and make them better straight away!

Imagine trying to teach a new midfielder what his new teammates have taken 3 years together to learn, in 3-4 training sessions!

Imagine a forward trying to fit into an established forward line and learn their patterns, whilst also trying to learn the midfield strategy and players' habits over the weekend before his first game?!

Even players that get traded in the off-season usually take a few months to settle in.

And in modern footy, with team defence, how the fu** would they be expected to pick that up immediately?


I can't think of any position on the ground these days that someone could just walk straight into and nail it.

I mean I'm sure a guy like Daicos or some other elite player could go somewhere like North and instantly make them better - but bottom teams are not the ones buying during Mid-Season Trades periods!!


Discuss...

 

[Blackhawk42]

Personally I think it's a slippery slope to destroying the fabric of the game, which is the tribalism and passion of the supporter group.

One of my favourite parts of the sport is the 'war of attrition'. You start pre-season with your squad, only able to add players from lower leagues to fill holes via the SSP and MSD.

Those who make smart list management decisions and implement the best strength and conditioning programs give themselves the best chance at success.

I fear that the AFL really loses something if, as an example, Port Adelaide are able to trade in Brodie Grundy

4

Brodie Grundy

Age

30

Ht

202cm

Wt

105kg

Pos.

Ruck

Career

Season

Last 5

D

17.5

4star

K

8.0

3star

HB

9.6

5star

CL

4.1

5star

HO

32.0

5star

D

16.4

4star

K

6.8

3star

HB

9.6

5star

CL

4.0

5star

HO

34.6

5star

D

13.8

4star

K

5.2

2star

HB

8.6

5star

CL

2.6

5star

HO

20.6

5star

in July for a half season tilt at a flag.
Wearing your club colours one week and a different set the following week REALLY doesn't sit well with me.

 

[Howard Littlejohn]

I much prefer the "your list is your list" approach. The mid-season draft shits me no end. As well as not following that approach it screws with premiership chances in state league, which other than the VFL are genuine competitions in their own right. (The VFL has become so bastardised by the AFL reserves and alignments few clubs actually care about winning, its barely a competition.)

 

[Guardian Hawk]

I also don't like the idea but I think the OP is missing the more likely ways it would be used.

I think the argument is for when teams are in contention for a flag and then, for example, they lose every ruckman on their list to a season ending injury. Trading in a semi competent VFL ruck from another team (especially one that may have been looking to be traded or delisted anyway) would be a win/win/win (for the player, for the team trading and for the team receiving). He may not know all the structures but competing in the ruck (instead of having to use one of your mids or your full back or whatever) would still improve the team he goes to, without creaing an unfair advantage for other competing teams. Before anone saying this would never happen to a side, similar scenarios have confronted a number of teams. I remember Luke Hodge having to be Hawthorn's ruckman for a while, Essendon entered a final with Nathan Lovett Murray as their ruck and countless better examples as well.

I still don't think it should be done (list sizes are big enough and the SSP and MSD draft can fill unanticipated glaring holes).

 

[Power Raid]

I see footy like any job

Players should be free to come and go as they please, any day of the week or even half time during a GF