Recommitted Zach Merrett [Re-Signed til 2027]

[Ambrosia]

6 years is a lot.

massive! glad to see loyalty isnt dead 6yr 800k isnt anything to sneeze at

It’s well under what you’d think he’d get on the open market.

 

[Adz2332]

It’s well under what you’d think he’d get on the open market.

yer i think so to. im guessing he went for more years over more money tho

 

[DeezNuts]

Awesome re-signing

Age saying over $800k, makes me think it might be a front loaded deal to make room for some of the young guns coming through in a few years

 

[Milanista28]

He got Zac Williams money, hopefully he can transition into the middle.

 

[Ants]

Great news.

Also means we can now chase a FA without it diluting compo.

 

[Bunk Moreland]

6 years is a lot.

Happy with it. He's our most important player and the next captain. Think he's missed 7 or 8 senior games since he was drafted, so very durable.

 

[Boristown]

No first round compo for you!

 

[Lore]

No first round compo for you!

Thank goodness!

 

[Elmer_Hauser]

Happy with it. He's our most important player and the next captain. Think he's missed 7 or 8 senior games since he was drafted, so very durable.

I can understand your enthusiasm and excitement, but still 6 years is a long time. I suppose if his contract is front or back loaded, it gives you more room to maneuver in the SC though.

 

[Northernsoul74]

Well done to Essendon for turning their fortunes around. Big keep for them.

 

[boncer34]

I can understand your enthusiasm and excitement, but still 6 years is a long time. I suppose if his contract is front or back loaded, it gives you more room to maneuver in the SC though.

Were you equally concerned about the 5 year deals handed to Williams and Saad?

 

[year of the cat]

massive! glad to see loyalty isnt dead 6yr 800k isnt anything to sneeze at

A $3.2M contract funnily enough will attract loyalty from a player.

 

[Pleasedonot]

A $3.2M contract funnily enough will attract loyalty from a player.

I mean...he was probably getting AT LEAST that sort of offer from other clubs...potentially even Geelong.

 

[andrewb]

Parish's price keeps going up. Could be a bit of a squeeze soon. I wouldn't wanna be paying Package too much to be honest.

Squeeze? Seriously? Merrett would have added $200-250k a year tops to his salary.

Saad, Daniher, McKenna and Fantasia left the club last year. That's probably close to $2m in cap. We brought in 2MP, Caldwell and Hind - there's probably close to $1m in difference. Hooker is out of a big contract at the end of the year. Hurley is out of a big contract at the end of next year.

The only squeeze will be how many FAs can we squeeze in given we'd have paid 95% of the cap last year and have an extra $M or two to throw at them

 

[Seb78]

6 years is a lot.

He's 25. It's not that much. Takes him to 31. I think he's only missed 10 games in his career.

 

[HirdsTheWord]

Schnitzengruben told you.

 

[Toadvine]

He's 25. It's not that much. Takes him to 31. I think he's only missed 10 games in his career.

Like others have mentioned I think he may have gone for more years on less money than the reverse. Which is a great move for Merrett and the club.

 

[JayJ20]

Yes!!!!

I can understand your enthusiasm and excitement, but still 6 years is a long time. I suppose if his contract is front or back loaded, it gives you more room to maneuver in the SC though.

He'll only be 32 though. That's not long for a durable player like him.

 

[citizen-erased]

happy days

 

[Ants]

For those questioning the length, yes its a risk. EFC fans shouldn't disregard that. But the alternative was to lose a player worth two good firsts for a single one. I'll take the risk over length any day.

 

[Lore]

For those questioning the length, yes its a risk. EFC fans shouldn't disregard that. But the alternative was to lose a player worth two good firsts for a single one. I'll take the risk over length any day.

I think it's okay to have a couple of veterans on the list, we don't have to have an age policy of no long term contracts past the age of 30.

If we had more than 2-3 in the over 30 category for 2027 6 years in advance I'd be worried, but he's the only one and no one else is even signed beyond 2024 atm.

 

[andrewb]

For those questioning the length, yes its a risk. EFC fans shouldn't disregard that. But the alternative was to lose a player worth two good firsts for a single one. I'll take the risk over length any day.

Those questioning the length are just embarrassed about their own

 

[Hak94]

He leaves, outsiders question things. He stays and you all still question the deal. Can't win haha!

I couldn't think of a more worthy or durable player in the past ten or so years that Essendon has seen than Zach to give this length of a deal. There's risk with all contracts, but this one feels appropriate for a player like Zach. There are far more questionable deals/contract lengths then this one and just like most have already said, the stats/numbers behind Merrett's rise to being one of the most elite mids in the game are there to prove this deal is worth everything + so much more. Delusional take if you think the length of contract + price isn't worth every cent to retaining him at Essendon, especially considering there would be 17 other clubs who would let this guy walk into their club and midfield if they could. This is as big of a resigning as Essendon has arguably ever had. Incredibly happy with this and I'm very much ok about the length of the deal.

 

[Wilbur23]

Shame. I thought he was definitely a player who was chasing a Premiership.

 

[Brutalitops]

A $3.2M contract funnily enough will attract loyalty from a player.

Not to be "that guy" but *$4.8M contract