Reports of Crows forward Mitch McGovern starting a player walkout at Adelaide are dismissed

CROWS forward Mitch McGovern is committed to his new three-year contract at the Adelaide Football Club, despite claims he is unhappy with his salary and the club is facing a player backlash.

CROWS forward Mitch McGovern is committed to his new three-year contract at the Adelaide Football Club amid claims the AFL club is facing a player backlash.

McGovern’s Perth-based management has dismissed an SEN radio report on Monday evening that the 23-year-old West Australian wants out of West Lakes to move to a Victorian-based AFL club. North Melbourne is mentioned as the major suitor.

McGovern’s manager Colin Young told The Advertiser on Monday night: “Mitch has not indicated that. We’ve all heard in the past two weeks that players are looking to get out of Adelaide, but to put Mitch McGovern in that group is ridiculous.”

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McGovern in late August extended his contract at West Lakes to the end of 2020 after rejecting significant overtures from the WA-based Fremantle and failing to draw a tempting offer from West Coast to join his older brother Jeremy.

The versatile forward was Adelaide’s major in-house signing last year when the Crows lost intercept defender Jake Lever to Melbourne.

Mitch McGovern celebrates a goal for the Crows. Picture: Getty Images

The SEN report is based on claims that McGovern, who missed the AFL grand final last year with a hamstring injury, later came to regret being rushed into a new deal — with a “low-ball” salary — at West Lakes, particularly after being challenged to make up his mind by coach Don Pyke in a strong rebuke after Adelaide’s loss to West Coast in the round 23 home-and-away closer in Perth.

The SEN report declares McGovern took issue with the salary detailed in his new contract after learning the Crows salary cap was being squeezed to secure Carlton midfielder Bryce Gibbs in October’s trade market.

An AFL player can ask to be released from his contract by a trade that would have to favour his current club. Usually this would be for compassionate reasons or as a go-home trade, quite the opposite to what is being purported with McGovern as he is being linked to a Melbourne-based club and Sydney.

McGovern, a third-round draftee (No. 43) in the 2014 AFL national draft, has played 44 games in three seasons with Adelaide. He is currently sidelined by an ankle injury suffered late in the loss to Port Adelaide in Showdown 44 on May 12 and is not expected to resume playing in mid-July.

Young’s industry reference to the growing suggestions of player unease at West Lakes is linked to the fallout from Adelaide’s contentious pre-season training camp at the Gold Coast. This is seen as a core point to the disjointed look to the 10th-ranked Crows (6-6) as they fall out of top-eight finals contention with a three-game losing streak and record of just one win in the past month.

Mitch McGovern signed a new deal late last year. Picture: Sarah Reed

The Gold Coast camp was to strengthen the Adelaide players mentally by challenging their weak points. But some Crows players have reflected on what was said to them on the Gold Coast as unfair criticism and internal assessment of them.

Adelaide’s list-management — and impending recruiting strategy for the promising November AFL national draft — is currently heavily linked to vice-captain and key midfielder Rory Sloane making his free agency call. He is expected to be heavily courted by a Melbourne-based club, regardless of new concerns with a foot injury.

Also telling for Adelaide’s draft plays is the contract impasse with running forward and team leader Tom Lynch.

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