Tom Lynch and Steven May did it in the same year. Two captains – co-captains no less – both walked out on their club, one as a trade, the other a free agent.
It was then, as it is now, extremely rare for captains to leave their clubs. But it was not totally surprising, for they played for Gold Coast, and they both had a homecoming excuse for returning to Victoria (although May was raised in Darwin, he did spend his secondary school years in Melbourne).
There will be a few clubs keeping a close eye on West Coast skipper Oscar Allen and his contract negotiations this season.Credit: AFL Photos via Getty Images
And at the time on the Gold Coast, the rarer thing was for good players to stay not go.
Typically, captains don’t move clubs. Typically, captains whose families are deeply embedded in the city and are synonymous with the football club that dominates that city do not move clubs. But modern commercial football has upended a lot of presumptions and raised the idea that it might be possible to prise West Coast captain Oscar Allen out of Perth.
The idea of Allen potentially leaving West Coast at year’s end might be unlikely, but it’s not outrageous. He will be out of contract and key-forward free agents are the most sought-after property in the frothing player market.
Several industry sources who didn’t want to be identified because no one ever wants to be seen publicly talking about another club’s player, even if they all do it all the time, said the only reason Allen hadn’t yet re-signed was the haggle over the length of his next contract.
Allen wants more years guaranteed, while the Eagles are worried about his longevity due to his grumbly knee and are reluctant to commit long term. Allen played only 11 games last year due to his knee injury.
Until he re-signs the prospect of him leaving will percolate and encourage suitors. I suspect he will remain an Eagle because even at West Coast – a corporation cum football club – it’s difficult to play hardball to the point your captain walks out the door. That suspicion will not dampen the interest of potential suitors.
His longer-term durability is of less concern to clubs who think he can help them contend for a premiership in the next couple of years, which is why Brisbane and Hawthorn are sniffing around.
After Joe Daniher’s sudden post-premiership retirement – the football equivalent of cool guys don’t look at explosions – the Lions shape as a compelling fit for Allen (and no, Daniher didn’t leave wreckage behind him, he just did the cool Clint Eastwood thing of walking away, without looking back).
If you get past the idea they are on the other side of the country – virtually every other team is if Allen chooses to leave – the Lions have a hole in their team in the position Allen plays and a sudden gap in their salary cap, both created by Daniher’s departure. And as the reigning premier, they are bang in the premiership window, so could potentially fill a hole in Allen’s CV with a premiership.
On Friday, The West Australian reported that Hawthorn also had keen interest in Allen. After the jolly old ride up the ladder last year, the Hawks now present as a club also in that window and a serious alternative for players. Not insignificantly, their coach Sam Mitchell also previously coached at West Coast, so has a connection to Allen.
The first game of football for the season only burnished their appeal. Yes, it was one game, but it was against last year’s beaten grand finalist, who in opening round at home had self-respect to be playing for as well as four points after the humiliation witnessed on grand final day. Hawthorn absorbed what the Swans had to offer, played their football and won.
Hawthorn skipper looked to enjoy his new-found freedom on Friday night.Credit: AFL Photos via Getty Images
Their strategically targeted off-season recruits Tom Barrass (ex-teammate of Allen) and Josh Battle worked well as a double act on Friday. They did what they were brought in to do and stabilised the Hawks’ tall defence. On the small SCG, they released James Sicily to be used wherever Mitchell wanted, not just wherever Mitchell needed.
But with Calsher Dear – a prodigiously talented key forward who deserves all the excitement and plaudits he draws – battling a back issue, the idea of bringing in Allen, or someone like him, has merit.
Mabior Chol is a powerful athlete who can bring the ball to ground but often prefers to use his speed and double back and get the ball out the back of the pack.
All any club can do to prise a player from their club is make their best case and let the player weigh up their choices. Allen will probably stay, but Hawthorn did not hurt their case with their first performance of the year.
Slow Pies
The scoreboard can make you look slow. Sometimes you also just are slower than the opposition. Collingwood was both.
Early misses in front of goal kicked the Magpies out of the contest against GWS when they had momentum – the opposite of their Richmond practice game – and sapped their energy. But still, they had no match for the leg speed of the Giants and their run and cary through the middle of the ground.
Finn Callaghan, Toby Bedford, Brent Daniel, Darcy Jones just ran away from Collingwood, who looked old and slow.
Well, they are old.
Finn Callaghan was in great form as the Giants made Collingwood look slow.Credit: AFL Photos via Getty Images
With Nick Daicos carrying a leg problem after half-time – possibly just bad cramp – they had no one else with speed able to open the game up. They will be better than that this year as the weather cools and legs tire, but the Giants first up were fast and brutal, and that magnified the gap between the team that played in last year’s preliminary final and the one that missed the eight.
Collingwood’s lack of speed was one thing, their method of delivery forward was another. Long dumped kicks inside 50 was not smart football against good, tall intercept marking defenders playing against a generally undersized forward line.
Blakey brilliance
Whispy moustache, flappy mullet, narrow visage; Nick Blakey does not scream ‘look at me’. Then he gets the ball, finds an opening, and he is one of the most watchable players in football.
When he takes off at speed, on one of his make-it-up-as-you-go dashes from defence, Blakey is exhilarating. He tucks the ball to his body, it would be under his shoulder, but he doesn’t seem to have any, then accelerates.
There are few half-back playmakers as effective as Sydney’s Nick Blakey.Credit: AFL Photos via Getty Images
He has this great way of looking at his opponents and assessing them. You can almost see his mind weighing up the arithmetic: “Yes, I can beat him. No, I can’t beat him.” Most of the time he can. Then he does.
The difference between Blakey and some of the other line-breaking running defenders, whom all clubs want and need to disrupt the best opposition defensive plans, is that he can kick the ball at high speed as cleanly and accurately as if he was doing a schoolyard kick-to-kick.
Blakey is the model of this type of defender because he is also tall so can play on bigger forwards, but his best and most damaging threat is when he goes on a searching run at pace and the game opens up before him. Plenty of clubs have players of his type – Gold Coast traded for Dan Rioli and John Noble to get their share. Collingwood brought in Dan Houston and moved Josh Daicos to defence to get architects by foot – but Blakey is as good as any.
Twenty’s the new 15
On an opening round sample – that’s not exactly a scientific amount, but it is the lead other coaches and players will now be taking – it looks like 20 could be the new 15.
The umpires looked eager to call “play on” for short kicks in the opening round, erring on the side of disallowing marks and keeping the game moving than letting allowing dinky kicks to hold up play.
It’s a good correction for there were far too many too short kicks – some less than 10 metres – last season. But we do not want to see an over–correction. Twenty-metre kicks shouldn’t become the minimum. It’s easier to defend the ground with 20-metre kicks, and you know you can sit that bit further off a player in a defensive zone. The defensive game doesn’t need more help.
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