Mo Hope could face a pay cut at Collingwood after failing to live up to expectations

COLLINGWOOD forward Mo Hope could face a pay cut next season as clubs restructure their lists during the AFL Women’s trade period.

Collingwood marquee Mo Hope in action this year.

COLLINGWOOD forward Mo Hope could face a pay cut next season as clubs restructure their lists during the AFL Women’s trade period.

Hope was an undeniable marketing asset for the Magpies in the debut AFLW season, but failed to live up to the hype on field.

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As a marquee signing she received $27,000 (including a $10,000 marketing payment) this year, but with clubs allowed just two tier-one players ($17,946 each) next year and four tier-two players ($12,846) — and the majority at tier three ($9276) — it is not expected she will remain in the top bracket.

Hope’s salary could still be boosted by a significant marketing payment, with clubs to be allocated a $40,000 ambassador fund to be shared between players. The maximum a player will be able to be awarded from that pool has been set at $10,000.

Moana Hope celebrates a Collingwood goal.

Erin Phillips in action for Adelaide.

“You’ve got to look at your list management, as you do, and you need to make sure you’re rewarding good performance too,” Collingwood coach Wayne Siekman said of the club’s 2018 strategy.

“If players are performing well in tier three or tier two and you don’t reward them, then other clubs, when spots open up, go `all right, we’ve got a spot in tier two, has Collingwood not upgraded you from tier three? Oh no they haven’t, well here’s a tier two offer, would you like to come to our club?’

“So you’ve got to make sure you reward the performances. Everyone knows (the landscape).

“At the moment, where we are as a club, now Stevens is gone, what it looks like, you don’t know.”

Premiers Adelaide need to make room at the top of its payment list for AFLW best-and-fairest Erin Phillips who was a rookie last year, but that job could have been made easier for the Crows with marquee Kellie Gibson expressing an interest in returning to Western Australia to play at Fremantle.

“There’ll be some management because obviously Erin should be a marquee player and she will be a marquee player next year,” Crows football administration general manager Phil Harper said.

“We’ve had to manage some of our players and there’s one who is looking to go somewhere else so that probably helps with our management of our list.

“We’re confident all the rest want to stay.”

Originally published as Mo Hope could face a pay cut at Collingwood after failing to live up to expectations