Jack Ginnivan’s manager reveals phone call with Graham Wright that convinced him the Pies premiership star had move on

Jack Ginnivan’s manager was assured Collingwood hadn’t spoken to rival clubs about the premiership star, but it was that chat that confirmed to him the forward’s future lay elsewhere.

MELBOURNE. 14/05/2023. AFL. Round 9. Collingwood vs GWS Giants at the MCG. Jack Ginnivan of the Magpies makes a love heart and points to the crowd after kicking a 4th qtr goal . Pic: Michael Klein

Jack Ginnivan’s manager says a phone call earlier this week to Collingwood football manager Graham Wright left him in no doubt the Magpies weren’t going to fight to keep the premiership small forward.

John Meesen, who played a key role in Ginnivan’s move to Hawthorn early on Wednesday, said he had approached Wright to ask him whether the Magpies had put the 20-year-old up for trade, as he had heard from other sources.

Wright assured him the Magpies hadn’t spoken about Ginnivan to rival clubs, but Meesen said that conversation convinced him his client’s future had to be elsewhere for the sake of his footy career.

Jack Ginnivan went from Pies favourite to Hawk in a matter of days. Picture: Michael Klein

“I picked up the phone and called ‘Wrighty’ after my phone started blowing up (about trade speculation) … as it was put to me that Jack was being floated around (to other clubs),” Meesen said on SEN.

“Wrighty said to me that they hadn’t had any conversations. I don’t want to go tit for tat, but from that conversation I got off the phone to him knowing that Jack’s future wasn’t at Collingwood.

“Who initiated the discussions was probably me on the back of some trusted people in the industry saying ‘look his name is getting thrown out there’. So I picked up the phone and took Wrighty at his word that he hadn’t had any conversations about Jack leaving.

“But from that, you start to unwind a little bit on ‘Where does he sit and what does it (his position within the team) look like, and can you give us any assurances?’

“There wasn’t a whole heap of fighting to keep Jack at the footy club. We had to move quickly and that’s OK. That’s the nature of the industry … we move on.”

Meesen conceded that the Magpies’ recruitment of 2023 Norm Smith Medal winner Bobby Hill this time last year and Lachie Schultz this week had shown the writing was on the wall for Ginnivan in terms of where he was placed within the team.

“When they decided to bring in some guys over the last few years – which they are entitled to do – it had a bit of an effect on where Jack stood in the standings of the Collingwood Football Club,” Meesen said.

Jack Ginnivan the Collingwood premiership player with Scott Pendlebury just three weeks ago. Picture: Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images

“He had one year to go and he has kind of been in and out of the side, and as they say you have to read the room.

“We had to potentially look at some other options.”

He stressed a few other clubs had expressed some interest in the 42-game small forward, but Hawthorn looked to be the best option heading towards the trade deadline, with coach Sam Mitchell being crucial to the talks.

“When Hawthorn were on top of their game, Sam was a public figure during that time, and everything he did was under the microscope,” Meesen said.

“He saw it a bit with Buddy (Franklin), just with the hysteria that was created. I am not saying Jack is in the same class as those guys, but he understands when you walk down the street and get a coffee, everyone is looking at you.

“Is he (Ginnivan) the most elite professional trainer … probably not. But he is young and not many players are at 20 years of age.

“I think the whirlwind he has had over the last two or three years (has been tough). He was relatively unknown, this enigma … it is kind of hard to escape that and settle into your career. Was it training standards, was it just him, was it just being at Collingwood under the magnifying glass?

“Less than 20 days ago he became a premiership player and now he finds himself at another footy club.

“Hopefully this (move) is what Jack needs to settle into his career and to just take the spotlight off him.”

Originally published as Jack Ginnivan’s manager reveals phone call with Graham Wright that convinced him the Pies premiership star had move on