Wreck It Ralph: The big challenges for the AFL as it creeps closer towards an American model in a social media world

Not long before Brad Scott gave Sam Draper another earbashing for his ‘disrespectful’ comments, the digital team was fully taking the piss. JON RALPH asks, can the industry have it both ways?

Not long before Brad Scott gave his ruckman Sam Draper another earbashing for his “disrespectful” podcast comments, his own club was mocking opponent West Coast for its recruiting clangers.

As Scott made clear Essendon was about regaining respect after its ASADA years, the digital team was fully taking the piss.

“They didn’t want him,” they crowed on X (formerly Twitter) after Nic Martin had racked up 17 first-half disposals against a West Coast team that overlooked him in its own backyard.

Someone from the Eagles’ recruiting team might eventually lose their job over clangers like that oversight, but the Dons were only doing what the cool kids of the AFL do on socials.

Luke Beveridge, too, was full of rage over Draper’s comments given the lack of respect from a player to a senior coach.

Even though his ruckman Rory Lobb has openly flouted his own VFL appearances in a series of bizarre TikTok videos that make clear his disillusionment with Beveridge’s selection call.

And his own Dogs social team recently mocked the media critics after a six-goal performance when they had dared suggest Aaron Naughton be trialled at centre half back.

Sam Draper made headlines last week. Picture: Michael Willson/AFL Photos

Welcome to the brave new world of the AFL in 2024, where old fashioned values like humility and respect are colliding with social media engagement and edginess.

And where players like Sam Draper are, if not caught in the crossfire, then at least collateral damage as they try to build brands through personality … but not too much personality.

As it turns out, truth is a defence for Draper.

This masthead reported two weeks ago Lobb is certain to be elsewhere next year if Tim English stays, while Caleb Daniel would be insane to stay at the Dogs given his relegation to the VFL.

His coach bemoaned his club’s inability to move the ball from defence and the back-end turnovers in the loss to Hawthorn, yet Daniel stagnates in the VFL.

If he hasn’t got the message yet, that he’s surplus to requirements, what more does he need?

And, yet, as players like Draper are finding to their peril, clubs chasing the irreverent and hilariously funny GWS social team for clicks and engagement want a different standard from their players.

Even when they look vaguely lame and try-hard when they attempt to imitate the Giants’ team, which wasn’t afraid to call out Sydney over its lack of celebrations for Sam Wicks this week.

The GWS social media crew have carte blanche to chase a younger crowd with humour and sass, even if the club’s best tweet will still remain: “The GIANTS have withdrawn their offer to Buddy Franklin based on advice that he will accept an offer from the Swans.”

They didn't want him 🤐 pic.twitter.com/pFCykcb5M4

— Essendon FC (@essendonfc) May 4, 2024

Working from the SCG today, see you soon. pic.twitter.com/dbavn3qIP8

— GWS GIANTS (@GWSGIANTS) May 3, 2024

On Fox Footy, Jason Dunstall said Draper was only taking his lead from the American sporting landscape.

“Let’s not persecute players. We want them to say things, don’t we? Have some colour and character,” he said.

“Our players take a lot of cues from American sports. They love it, they watch it — they (American athletes) celebrate more. “We see personality (from AFL players) — we want them to talk. If they say something controversial, it’s great.”

Even Scott admitted the balance was delicate for Draper.

“Oh yeah, I think the game’s got plenty of room for a bit of colour. This is the thing with Drapes, he adds massive colour. I see a lot of four and five-year-olds running around with mullets with number two on their back on the Essendon jumper, and it’s fantastic.

“I love it. He’s a very marketable type of guy and he’s a loveable guy. He’s such good fun to be around and such a great club man. But there is a line in terms of what is colour and what’s extroversion and what’s disrespectful.”

But the problem for AFL players looking to make a buck and grow their brand as quasi-influencers on social media is there is only one Christian Petracca making cash out of wholesome and healthy cooking recipes.

How to be edgy and “out-there” gaining followers to monetise in a world where their market cares more for this week’s Kendrick Lamar v Drake diss track than Xs and Os on a footy field?

The current trend is podcast appearances where players chat with mates and acquaintances in increasingly relaxed fashion before the inevitable slip of the tongue.

@lexiimary Jk jk #vfl #afl #fyp #godogs ♬ som original - Reede Newhouse

Christian Petracca might be the only AFL star on the right social media track.

Perhaps Taylor Adams’ chip at Craig McRae over his departure on the Unlaced podcast was more a deliberate surgical strike than stray words, and he certainly hit the mark.

But that podcast was 80 minutes long and a terrific insight into Adams’ journey – from GWS to Collingwood, to Sydney across all the highlights and heartbreaks.

Here is the lesson for AFL players – you are absolutely guaranteed to be taken out of context on those podcasts.

The one dramatic sound bite or crazy line you utter will be used to promote that podcast across all media platforms.

Here is the lesson for AFL players and all of us – social media is not real life.

As Adams detailed on that podcast, grace and humility and teamwork in football clubs are still the building blocks of sustained success.

He spoke about the impact his great mate Brodie Grundy had in changing Collingwood’s culture for the better at a time when the club was in the weeds.

Like any club, Collingwood had struggled to balance the old school mentality with the integration of players like Heritier Lumumba, who challenged the club on its frat boy mannerisms.

“Off the field he changed the fabric of the Collingwood football club,” Adams said.

“He is a very progressive, deep thinker and football clubs need someone like him to help direct them as the way society is going and the way football clubs were a number of years ago. There needed to be a change. For some people football clubs were a horrible place. People with my personality, a bit more of an extrovert and pretty thick skinned you get through fine. But there are a lot of guys who aren’t like me and they are in the minority because they just don’t make it through. But clubs should be places where anyone can feel safe and comfortable and go out there and become their best version of themselves and through some deep internal reflection on our group and some help from Brodie particularly, he is the trailblazer in that sense. We were able to change our environment to become a really loving, caring environment.”

Ironically, McRae extolled those principles on Saturday only a day after the Adams podcast had dropped as he made clear his recollections differed from his former vice-captain.

As he explained his version of events in an ABC Radio interview which included Mick Malthouse, he went to work.

He graciously asked Pies premiership coach Malthouse for his advice on exiting the club’s greats, listened with intent to the answer and reminded him it was time for another catch-up walk around the Botanical Gardens.

Malthouse, who exited Collingwood in such rocky circumstances, positively beamed.

Rory Lobb and Lexi Mary.

Collingwood coach Craig McRae. Picture: Quinn Rooney/Getty Images

It was a masterclass in compassion and relationship-building from the Collingwood coach and a reminder of McRae’s magnetism.

And in a week where the Pies were again lauded for their manners against Carlton, as Darcy Moore delivered another classy post-match speech and McRae joined the AFL coaches in delivering a message against violence to women.

Those of us in the media will continue to ask for players to say what they actually think then criticise them for it as Melbourne’s Ed Langdon found when he said the Pies could be “all duck, no dinner” back in 2022.

To suggest we are more open about players calling it as it is would be blatantly hypocritical.

Especially having quoted Ryan Griffen back in 2006 when he said of Richmond that “definitely after half time they felt they basically gave up”.

Eighteen years on, those kinds of comments would still be labelled as graceless and unnecessary instead of just what they are – honest.

So we will edge slowly towards the American model, but not too close.

Clubs will try to capture the young audience with edgy social media stuff, even if some will still come up off like your daggy mum posting on Facebook.

And there will still be a place in the game for the old-fashioned values that will never go out of style.

Even if we will watch Draper’s return against GWS this week, aware those comments and what happens next will only enhance the drama and marketing of that contest.

Originally published as Wreck It Ralph: The big challenges for the AFL as it creeps closer towards an American model in a social media world