AFL 2023: What Jordan Dawson being named Crows captain could mean for Tom Doedee’s future

Tom Doedee looked a standout choice as Adelaide captain, but was overlooked in favour of Jordan Dawson. And the free agent has put his contract talks on hold.

Just after 11am on Saturday morning the phones of every Victorian list manager started to blow up.

That was when the news dropped about Jordan Dawson‘s appointment as the new Adelaide Crows captain but the phone calls weren’t about him, it was about the player he’d leapfrogged over to get the job.

Tom Doedee was already one of the biggest names in the 2023 free agent pool, now he‘s at the top of the pops given you don’t have to be Nostradamus to work out how the next eight months will unfold.

The Crows defender has already put contract talks on hold, they will remain that way as he gets his way back from injury, and then by mid-season when the Crows are most likely struggling again he‘ll privately start to look at the big-time offers coming from over the border.

And then when the season comes to a close, the former Geelong Falcon will reveal that suddenly the pull of home is too much and he’ll be activating his free agency status to get back to Victoria.

In-between time, there will be plenty of denials and pledges of love for Adelaide, but mark February 11 down as the day all 10 Victorian clubs started formulating their juicy offers for the 25-year-old centre half-back.

Rory Sloane shakes hands with Jordan Dawson after handing over the baton as Crows captain. Picture: Emma Brasier

But what does it all mean for Tom Doedee? Picture: Dylan Burns/AFL Photos

Doedee captained the Crows in five games in 2020 while Rory Sloane was out injured. He was put in the leadership group after just two seasons in the senior team.

Now being overtaken by someone whose been at West Lakes for five minutes has to be a kick in the guts.

While the appointment of Dawson came as a shock to many, it was greeted with a nod of approval in Sydney.

They knew all about his leadership qualities when he decided he wanted to go home to Adelaide at the end of the 2021 season.

Both South Australia teams were chasing Dawson and there were plenty of contacts in the Harbour City telling both that the half-back flanker with a booming left-foot was a special player.

On the field, Crows fans got to see that last year with his magical moment coming in just his third game when he kicked the winning goal in a famous after-the-siren Showdown victory over Port Adelaide.

Dawson went on to finish runner-up in the best-and-fairest and Crows coach Matthew Nicks called him a “natural leader” whose great strength was his ability to remain calm in chaos.

Doedee had captained the Crows in Sloane’s absence. Picture: Matt Roberts/AFL Photos

What happens to Doedee next will be interesting. He was part of a leadership group who shared the role last year – the others were Ben Keays, Reilly O’Brien and Brodie Smith – while Sloane was out with a serious knee injury.

The question that many will ask is did his decision to delay contract talks cost him the captaincy. Last month, Doedee was on local Adelaide radio explaining why he’d dodged the decision to make a long-term commitment to the Crows.

“With the injuries that I’ve had and the surgeries I’ve had I knew I wouldn’t be able to commit to negotiating the contract stuff without being fully involved,“ Doedee told 5AA.

“I want to put that back, I want to focus on my rehab, make sure my shoulder’s right, give myself the best chance to play round one and then figure it out from there. I’m on path in that regard . . . and the contract stuff will follow.”

Which path he heads down now may be a different one to what he was thinking before the captaincy snub.

It‘s certainly a line his agent will be hearing from Victorian clubs as they ramp up their ’Get Doedee’ campaigns.