Despite his failed attempt to leave Essendon, Zach Merrett has not ruled himself out of seeking the captaincy again next season.
For the first time since walking back in the door at the Hangar after his request to be traded to Hawthorn was denied, Merrett has spoken in detail, saying he is comfortable with the decision and knew all along it was a long shot to leave.
Zach Merrett has opened up about his off-season decision to request a trade from Essendon to Hawthorn.Credit: Essendon FC
Merrett, this year’s captain who won his sixth club best-and-fairest award while seeking to leave the Bombers, said he was at peace with not getting his wish and had not ruled himself out of seeking to lead the club next season – whether that be as captain is another matter.
“There will be a process, we’ll see what that looks like,” he said when asked if he would seek the captaincy again.
Merrett said his rationale for wanting out was not personal. In fact, he spoke glowingly of Essendon coach Brad Scott, declaring, “I have played my best footy under him”, and also of the club’s chief executive, Craig Vozzo, who he described as “the nicest person in football”. He also spoke of president Andrew Welsh’s support and of list manager Matt Rosa, who delivered on his promise to Merrett of drafting two elite, big-bodied midfielders to support him in that part of the ground and a clean ball user off half-back.
Dyson Heppell and Zach Merrett during the 2022 season.Credit: Getty Images
Struggling to see the light
Dyson Heppell’s retirement sowed the seeds of doubt for Merrett.
His predecessor as captain left the game without even a finals win. In the middle of this season, as player after player fell to injury and another season of mediocrity gurgled away, Merrett could see himself following Heppell’s career path.
This, he says, was the reason for his extraordinary attempt to parachute from the Bombers.
“I’m very single-minded around success and very focused on growing and getting better and performing, but success underpins all of that stuff, and I knew I was knocking on the door of 30 [years old]. And I am really close with Dyson, and with him finishing up pretty recently, I always thought we’d have success together.
“And then seeing, not his pain, but the disappointment he had in the way his career finished, it was starting to hit home. As much as I want to play forever, I’m definitely on the back nine rather than the front, so it felt like, ‘Do I need a shift or new environment to achieve what I want to achieve?’
“Everyone’s journey is different, but I have had five head coaches and 160 teammates in my 12 years.
“Throughout the year, guys kept going down injured, and then we’re losing games. I was really trying to compartmentalise and focus on performing and leading as well as I could in the season.
“I wouldn’t say I lost faith [in those running the club and football]. It was just more around through all those changes, everyone’s got the right intentions and passions and hoping to do the right thing for the club, [but] the evidence obviously suggests we haven’t won a final for a long, long time.
“It was just more ‘OK, now we’ve lost 20 guys to injury’ and there’s talk of us changing the head of performance, and that’s going to be another big change for the program. No doubt when you see [Jordan] Ridley, [Darcy] Parish, [Kyle] Langford, a lot of guys have repeat injuries, you’re starting to get a little bit nervous because you’re like, ‘What’s what’s going on here?’ And it’s such a tight competition at the moment, [if] you lose three or four of your better six or seven players it becomes very hard in a young group.”
Merrett said doubts about the time frame for success at Essendon nagged at him during the year. His response was to train harder and try to ease the burden on Scott.
At season’s end he met with his manager Tom Petroro and raised the idea of a move.
“The conversation was more serious about, I’m not in a dark spot, but I’m struggling a bit to see the light here,” Merrett said.
The pair then had dinner with Scott and Vozzo at Scott’s house, where he aired his concerns and floated the possibility of him needing to look elsewhere.
“I was really keen to be respectful of them. I was obviously very, very aware that I’d signed a contract, and was very appreciative I had locked-in security and I had willingly signed that contract.
“So the whole way through I understood Essendon well and truly had the right to work for a deal as they see fit, but it would have to be a ridiculous deal. Brad and Craig were, honestly, really supportive and very good in the conversations we had.
“Craig was really clear that it’s a board decision, and there’s a lot of hoops to go through. And Brad is such a supportive coach. He was very much looking in the best interest of me and my family, but also understood it would be difficult to happen.
“People may see it as the easy option, [but] it was a lot of sleepless nights, a lot of tossing and turning around what is the right thing for me.
“I’ve seen a lot of people come and go at the footy club through my time, and I felt that I would never have that tipping point. Unfortunately, I probably reached mine this year, so I felt like [leaving] was the best option for me late in the year. I am definitely not searching for any sympathy.”
Why Hawthorn?
Deciding to explore the idea of leaving was one thing; settling on where he wanted to go and nominating only one club made the reality of finding an equitable trade slightly more difficult.
Senior coach Sam Mitchell was heavily involved in the attempt to poach Merrett while under contract.Credit: AFL Photos
Merrett says he understood that, but also was not in a position where he just wanted to get out of Essendon and would go anywhere. He was only interested in going to a club where he could envisage success in his final years as a player. He liked the window Hawthorn were entering and could see how he could help them and they him.
“Then obviously I respect Sam [Mitchell],” he said. “He’s had an amazing career, and he’s a pretty aggressive coach at the forefront of the way the game’s played. The way they play is quite exciting.
“Obviously, they put up three first-rounders [draft picks], so they were not offering nothing, but it didn’t happen.
“I was very aware all the way along that this wasn’t a strong chance of happening, understanding that I have two years on a contract, I’m club captain and I’ve played some pretty good football for the last few years.
“Tommy was really clear with me on the expectations, so it wasn’t a massive surprise when it didn’t get done. I understand Essendon were looking for a Godfather offer. ”
Facing blowback
Any time the best player at a club wants to leave, especially while in contract, there is trauma for supporters. When it is the captain and the club’s only bona fide A-grade player seeking to leave a club that has been starved of success, the pain is on another level.
Merrett knew that, even by floating the idea of wanting out, he would open himself to criticism that he had betrayed his club and abdicated his leadership position.
“I understand that there were going to be ramifications, there was going to be a backlash, and I was comfortable with that.” he said.
“I didn’t want to finish my career with regrets around what I could have or couldn’t have done. This was the decision I went with, that I feel comfortable I made.”
Some of that backlash was from his teammates. Mason Redman and Andy McGrath both publicly said they were disappointed and angry with the news. Later this year, Merrett did not attend McGrath’s wedding, which was interpreted as a snub. But Merrett said he had spoken to McGrath towards the end of the season to explain he couldn’t be there as he was already going to former teammate Marty Gleeson’s wedding in Queensland.
“I probably had 25 messages and calls from my teammates being very supportive and had good conversations with them. So I actually felt a lot of love and support, although publicly, those two boys, I think were more going public to support the club and support Brad, which they were entitled to do.
“I think, for me, with those guys, we’ve had conversations since, and in a weird way, I think the fact they were so keen for me to stay is a good sign that they weren’t kicking me out the door. I understood at the time it was more trying to support Brad.
“And Brad and I had probably five conversations throughout the trade period, so our dialogue was always consistent. I visited his house and he called me four or five times, so there was no real need to break bread after it. I’ve been pretty clear with him that there was never an issue between us.
“Brad and I have got a strong relationship, and I think I’ve played probably the best footy of my career the last three years under him.”
Walking back in
While others might feel sheepish or uncomfortable returning to their club after an unsuccessful attempt to leave, Merrett didn’t.
“I was just keen to get back and put some good sessions on the training track,” he said. “It’s nice just to get back into the Hangar with the boys and have a bit of a laugh and a bit of banter. Being there 12 years now, I have some incredible relationships in and out of footy. So in a weird way, I was quite excited [to go back to the club].
“There’s obviously a team element that’s first and foremost, but everyone always understands that you’re also there to do what’s best for you and your family. This conversation has been had, I don’t see there being a formal discussion with the group.”
One of the first meetings Merrett had when he came back was with Rosa, Essendon’s list manager.
“We had obviously chatted a little bit throughout the season as well. I would give my opinion of the list and some of the players we do have or don’t have, what we could potentially get. So those conversations were picked up pretty quickly after the trade didn’t go ahead, and on Monday I think I asked for two big-bodied mids and a nice kick off half-back.
“So he texted me Wednesday night laughing because he got all three, which was nice.”
Sullivan Robey (192 centimetres) and Dyson Sharp (187cm) are both power mids, while Jake Farrow is a good user of the football and rebound runner.
“I’m just excited to see them. You watch the highlight reels of those two big boys, and I think we’ve been crying out for that for a few years, so I’m excited to get them to the club,” Merrett said.
Multiple times during this interview, Merrett mentions his excitement to work hard and do everything to improve the club next year. It feels notable he does not say for the rest of my contract or career.
During the robust trade talks to get him to Hawthorn, Merrett’s manager Petroro mentioned more than once to Essendon that they could find themselves in the same position 12 months on, with his client asking for a trade and his trade value likely to have decreased.
It also emerged during those talks that Merrett’s contract had been front-ended, with the bulk of his money coming in the first two years, meaning he was likely to be playing for well below his market value in the final two years.
Merrett dead-batted questions about whether he would either seek a trade again in 12 months, or revisit his contract and extend his stay at the Bombers.
It is premature for a decision on those outcomes right now, but if either were to happen in the next year, it would not be a surprise.
Zach Merrett and Andrew McGrath share a laugh back in April. Merrett could yet cede the captaincy to McGrath before next season.Credit: AFL Photos
Aspiring to lead
Merrett is equivocal on where he stands with what happens next as a leader. He believes his honesty with himself and his courage to hold a mirror to the club is a strength of leadership. He has not ruled himself out of retaining the captaincy, or another form of leadership, next season.
“Obviously, it depends on defining a leader. I won’t change the way I go about trying to influence the group and trying to perform,” he said. “So whether that’s a title or not, we’ll wait and see. I’ll always be who I am and try and lead as much as I can to help the boys win and try and win a final, and hopefully, in turn, win a premiership.”
So, will he put himself forward to keep the captaincy?
“There will be a process. I don’t know what that will look like. And to be honest, my mind’s been racing for two months,” Merrett said. “Once it’s all died down, I’m sure there’ll be conversations had, like there is every year at every club. There will be a very clear process, and whatever’s best for the club, I’ll be fully supportive of it.
“I do get it that from the outside looking in, it would look like, ‘Geez, how do they mend this relationship?’ But internally those conversations we had face to face or over the phone were always very positive and strong. And I have enormous respect for Brad, Craig and Matty and Welshy.
“We all know we need to get the wheels rolling quicker and have more urgency around chasing that success and being a dominant club again.
“We have been in that middle tier now for eight to 10 years, hopefully in a weird way – not that this is the outcome I wanted – but hopefully everyone now is really, really energetic and urgent around getting success quickly.
“My decision was just literally [about] whether the club’s timeline fitted mine and whether potentially me leaving would give them a better draft hand to slingshot into the next 10 years. And the club said, ‘No, we’re really happy to keep you.’
“So for me now, it’s honouring that contract as well as I can, and performing and having the best possible year I can to hopefully slingshot us into that top 10.”
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