AFLW trade news: Brisbane Lions coach fumes over expansion club offers

An AFLW coach has blasted the league’s expansion process as existing clubs prepare for their biggest stars to be subject to massive offers.

Brisbane AFLW coach Craig Starcevich has lashed the expansion process, saying clubs are having the rug pulled out from under them.

The Lions lost their preliminary final against Melbourne at the MCG on Saturday afternoon by four-points, and when questioned on what the off-season looked like for Brisbane, the reigning premiership coach didn’t hold back.

It has been reported that North Melbourne ball-magnet Ash Riddell and Western Bulldogs Ellie Blackburn, Kirsty Lamb, Bonnie Toogood, and Issy Huntington are subject to big offers from other clubs.

Initially Starcevich said he wouldn’t comment on the expansion situation because it makes him very “cranky”, but the 54-year-old proceeded to raise concerns over the process.

“We’ve been in the comp six years, and we went through a couple of years ago the big four team expansion, and it was like ‘Jesus, we’re down to 17 players’”.

Craig Starcevich has hit out at the AFLW expansion process.

“In hindsight it did us a massive favour because we brought in O’Dwyer, Davidson and Bodey, you name it.

“We had a good off-season there to bring them in and it took us a year or two to get cranking but we’re okay now.

“If it’s going to happen again now, that’s fine to say the comp needs to expand and you need players going here and there, but it doesn’t help us, it never helps us.

“Because we’re the ones who put the time and effort into developing players, developing relationships and then what do you do, go and pull the rug out from under us. It drives me fricking mad.”

Starcevich said he wasn’t sure if there was another way to introduce expansion.

“It drives me mad because we run the team, we coach the team, we develop the players and I don’t know what the answer is but it drives me mad that your big offers come in from the clubs who are not even in the comp and the tail ends up wagging the dog, they end up making all the demands about how to get players,” he said.”

“I’ve said too much.

“(It’s) very disruptive. We’re not the only club. Whatever was reported about the Bulldogs for example, jeez, like, come on.”

SWANS EYE MOVE FOR AFLW RECORD BREAKER

Prolific ballwinner Ash Riddell is in Sydney’s sights.

The North Melbourne midfielder — who set a league record a fortnight ago gathering 42 disposals in a game —- has emerged as a key target for expansion club Sydney where her former coach Scott Gowans is at the helm.

Initial indications are that Riddell is keen to stay at Arden Street but that the Swans’ approach is one that has included an offer to move to the Harbour City.

Riddell was named alongside teammates Emma Kearney and Jasmine Garner in the AFLW Zell-Australian squad this week.

The on-baller played under inaugural Swans coach Gowans for Diamond Creek in Victoria’s state league competition.

The Swans will be permitted to sign up to 14 players from other AFLW lists under expansion rules before the draft order is finalised.

It is expected that an initial trade period will be held for the four expansion clubs – Sydney, Port Adelaide, Essendon and Hawthorn – before the wider competition sign and trade period begins in coming weeks.

Ash Riddell broke her own AFLW disposals record recently.

Scott Gowans has been named as Sydney’s inaugural AFLW coach.

STAR SAINT PREPARED TO SIT OUT ANOTHER SEASON

Georgia Patrikios will not play AFL Women’s next season if the league’s vaccine mandate policy stays in place.

The St Kilda star – who was considered in the top 10 players in the competition before she missed the 2022 season after a refusal to be vaccinated against coronavirus – remains unvaccinated against Covid-19 after revealing her hesitancy last November.

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Patrikios’ manager Alex Saundry confirmed to News Corp Australia with the young Saint’s permission that the situation remains as it has in recent months and that if the policy stands then she will not participate in the upcoming season, which is expected to be brought forward to August.

Georgia Patrikios’s career remains on hold while she is unvaccinated.

The TGA approval of the protein-based Novavax vaccination did not sway the firm stance of Patrikios, who turns 21 on Wednesday.

She is also out of contract, though Saundry remains optimistic regarding ongoing talks with St Kilda.

The Saints have remained in dialogue with the rising star nominee, with the Patrikios camp heartened by the club’s ongoing support.

It is understood that she remains firmly committed to St Kilda and would not pursue a move elsewhere.

The club could look to keep Patrikios — who was not moved to inactive in 2022 — on its playing list in an effort to retain her should her stance change, meaning it would be giving up a spot on its list for another player to join the club.

Should she be recontracted, the club could place training expectations upon her so she could be ready to play should she reach the point of changing her mind.

All AFLW and AFL players must have received two doses of an approved vaccine in order to train and play, as per the league’s policy, which it is adamant will not be changing any time soon as per government guidelines.

Medical exemptions are available under the league’s policy but are considered incredibly rare, with West Coast forward Jack Darling’s recent application denied.

THE DRUMS ARE BEATING

As the sign and trade period looms – without any concrete dates, no less – talk is starting to ramp up about potential movers come the season’s official end at around 5pm on April 9.

Western Bulldogs young gun Isabel Huntington is considering her options, with a move to Greater Western Sydney one choice that is in play, while star Carlton midfielder Madison Prespakis has been floated as a target for expansion club Essendon.

Collingwood duo Sarah Rowe and Jaimee Lambert have also been reported as targets for Sydney and Hawthorn respectively.

Watch this space.

Crows superstar Erin Phillips is high on Port Adelaide’s recruiting list.

POWERING TO IT

Port Adelaide is the only AFL Women’s expansion team to have yet appointed a senior coach, but that’s set to change, with Power insiders saying they will announce their inaugural coach in the next fortnight.

And it appears a current AFLW head coach has emerged as a possibility for the job.

Despite speculation that Crows superstar Erin Phillips is in the frame for the role – along with current head coaches in the SANFLW — it’s South Australian Steve Symonds – who is contracted at Collingwood for another season — who has emerged as a key name firmly in the mix.

Collingwood head coach Steve Symonds’ family remains in Adelaide.

Symonds helped establish Norwood’s inaugural SANFL women’s program and coached the Redlegs to two grand finals and the 2017 premiership before moving to AFLW. When Symonds accepted the Magpies role in 2019, his family made the decision to stay behind in Adelaide.

Since his tenure began, Symonds has led Collingwood into three successive finals campaigns.

An ideal scenario for Port could be to poach Symonds and appoint Phillips, who has previous coaching experience in the WNBA, as a playing-assistant coach – to give her time to become a coach in her own right.

POWER’S LIST BUILD

Port is also the only expansion club to have not named any players, but a flurry of inaugural signings will follow the announcement of their coach.

Under expansion rules, Port will be able to sign up to 14 currently listed AFLW players.

It’s understood the Power wants to use a recruitment strategy based around signing SA players, and according to insiders, calls have already been put in to the managers of the majority of current Crows players.

The Crows – whose 2022 season has been built around not worrying about what will happen when Port enters the competition – are hoping their strong culture both on and off the field built over their six seasons will be enough to retain the majority of their current list.

The Power is looking far and wide and it’s understood that South Australians currently playing for interstate clubs are also being canvassed.

Daniel Harford is yet to sign on as coach of Carlton’s AFLW side for the coming season.

HARFWAY IN OR OUT?

Carlton remains yet to agree to a new deal with coach Daniel Harford.

Harford, a premiership coach in the VAFA and EFNL, has led the Blues since taking the reins after the 2018 season.

The out-of-contract former Hawk and Blue held exit meetings with players in recent weeks after what he described as a “foundation” game against preliminary finalist Melbourne in the final round of the season.

“We’ve got such a good group that is evolving and emerging together,” he said.

“We just need some time to get them to be the best players in the competition, which I think we can.”

The Blues will award their best and fairest winner next Thursday night at Crown.

Ellie Blackburn believes Year 12 students might pick school over footy this coming draft.

SCHOOL OF HARD KNOCKS

AFLW draftees face a stark choice – nominate for this year’s draft and play a season that falls smack bang in their Year 12 exam period, or hold back and nominate as a top-age player in 2023.

Western Bulldogs skipper Ellie Blackburn said many young players would face the difficult dilemma, and said that she expected the studies would win out for many.

It’s a quandary that is firmly on the radar of a number of clubs as they scout young talent as the competition prepares to expand in big numbers.

With four new clubs plus delistings and retirements to account for, it is estimated that almost 200 new players will be called upon to enter the AFLW system.

And it’s left a number of clubs asking not just where they will come from, but whether they’ll be up to the task.

It doesn’t take a Year 12 Maths Methods specialist to work out there’s some number crunching to be done – and quickly.

AUGUST CALLING

Collective bargaining agreement talks are set to ramp up between the league and the AFL Players’ Association with an eye to starting the next AFLW season this August, though AFLPA boss Paul Marsh concedes there’s a lot to be done before anything is ticked off.

While consensus between league and players is that August is the best timeslot for the game as things stand, Marsh said more certainty around pay, hours, fixture and giving players enough notice is key to locking things in.

“Where are right now, we are endeavouring to get this season up for August 2022. There are challenges that we need to work through,” he told The W podcast.

“Ourselves and the AFL have made a commitment to once the season is finished, to sit down and this is our number one priority as a business right now, is to get this deal done. We will do everything we can, day and night, to get this done as quickly as possible.

“We owe it to the players, and the clubs for that matter.”

If things drag on, that’s when it becomes “incredibly challenging”, Marsh said.

He said many players “are as tired as I’ve ever seen any athletes” after a gruelling summer season.

Originally published as AFLW trade news: Brisbane Lions coach fumes over expansion club offers