Crows vice-captain Rory Sloane will not make life easier for Adelaide with an early announcement on his free agency — unless he wants to stay
THE ADVERTISER columnist Kane Cornes wants an early call from Crows vice-captain Rory Sloane. But what is to be gained from any in-season announcement other than the decision to stay at Adelaide?
- Cornes: Crows need answer from Rory now
- Blight: What’s on your mind, Rory?
- Crows star Sloane blasts Judd
LET’S have a “sliding doors” moment.
Crows vice-captain Rory Sloane announces today that he is taking up AFL free agency accepting an offer to return to his home base in Melbourne with the Hawthorn Football Club.
Does Adelaide stop playing the All-Australian midfielder, particularly in Thursday night’s must-win clash with Geelong at Adelaide Oval?
No, the Crows can’t — certainly not when the AFL would dust down its tanking rule demanding teams field their best-possible line-ups.
Does Adelaide match Hawthorn’s offer to the restricted free agent? Perhaps, but once a player chooses to go it is best to find a replacement is who is committed to the cause rather than his pay cheque.
Do the Crows let Sloane walk for an uncertain compensation pick … or, as it did with Geelong in similar circumstances, work a trade? If it is the latter, can anyone imagine the Hawks — while in a hot race for eighth spot — calling a team meeting to ask for volunteers for a trade to Adelaide?
Do the Crows get any clarity on their salary cap exposure? It already has this. If Adelaide does not know today what Sloane takes from its wage bill in the next three years, something is indeed wrong in the football department at West Lakes.
So far, Sloane’s early call is not achieving much other than have removalists know they can start bidding for a job along the Dukes Highway.
Alternatively, Sloane remains silent on his intent for next season.
The Crows continue to field the player who delivers the most in on-field leadership and in setting the critical agenda for contested football — and a never-say-die spirit that every AFL side needs.
Adelaide is no worse off in planning its list-management strategies for the trade period in October and AFL national draft in November — more so when so many of the draft picks the Crows gained in advance for losing players such as Jake Lever and trading for Bryce Gibbs are still undefined as a specific number in the draft order.
Adelaide has no issue projecting the salary cap. Sloane either takes up $850,000 or he doesn’t.
Adelaide, with or without Sloane next season, still needs — as premiership coach Malcolm Blight noted in The Advertiser last week — to find a pacy midfielder to change the power of a one-dimensional, one-speed engine room.
Not much changes with Sloane declaring his intent today or at the end of Adelaide’s campaign (except for the masters at AFL House frowning if Sloane says he is out of West Lakes now).
Sloane could — as his good friend Patrick Dangerfield did — have a quiet chat with football boss Brett Burton (it was David Noble in Dangerfield’s case) in late August to declare his intent to leave.
The Crows continued to play Dangerfield. They would continue to play Sloane.
Everyone kept their lips shut, even though it was obvious Dangerfield was gone to Geelong.
And as the trade period does not open until early October, both Adelaide and Hawthorn will have much time in September to work a trade … if that is where this saga is to finish.
The only early announcement that Sloane needs to make is the one every Crows fan wants to hear — that he wants to stay at Adelaide. The other call can wait.
michelangelo.rucci@news.com.au
Watch every match of every round of the 2018 Toyota AFL Premiership Season. SIGN UP NOW >