Essendon vows to play hardball with Sydney on Joe Daniher
If Sydney wants pry Joe Daniher out of Essendon, it will have to pay a massive price for the oft-injured star forward, who former Bombers champion Brendon Goddard says could have been more dedicated to his rehabilitation.
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Essendon has declared it will keep father-son gem Joe Daniher at the club against his wishes next season unless Sydney cedes to its trade demands.
The gun spearhead has informed the club he wants to move to Sydney, but the Bombers are prepared to follow Geelong’s move with Tim Kelly last year and hold Daniher to his contract.
It means the Swans will have to consider forking out pick No.5 and possibly 9 (from Carlton for Tom Papley) as part of a mega deal to satisfy the Bombers.
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The standoff comes as former Essendon captain Brendon Goddard said Daniher, 25, didn’t dedicate himself fully to his recovery from his first groin injury early last year.
Essendon doesn’t want to release Daniher now, as there are limited key forward replacement options in this year’s trade and draft periods.
The Bombers would be better-placed to try to gatecrash St Kilda’s plans to nab burgeoning tall Ben King or zero in on Greater Western Sydney free agent Jeremy Cameron at the end of next season.
While Daniher officially informed the club he wanted out on Sunday, Essendon list boss Adrian Dodoro said the Bombers intended on keeping Daniher and speedster Orazio Fantasia for 2020 and beyond.
“It’s our intention to keep Joe,” Dodoro said.
“He’s an All-Australian centre-half forward and a best-and-fairest winner at our club. He is coming into the peak years of his footy.
“We have expressed to him and his management team that we’ll be doing everything possible to keep him.”
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If Essendon traded Daniher now it would be at risk of selling the gun forward at his lowest value after groin problems wrecked his 2018-19 seasons.
Daniher has played only 11 games in the past two years and is recovering from serious groin surgery in May.
Goddard, who played alongside Daniher until he retired last season, said the full-forward could have worked harder in the gym to repair his groins.
“I think he could have gone about it a better way with his rehabilitation and particularly the first time around to get himself right, or give himself the best chance,” Goddard said on RSN.
“And he still may have been in this situation and missed the whole year of footy, and had the surgery.
“But at the time, I didn’t think he dedicated himself hard enough to recovering and rehabilitation and give himself the best chance to get himself right.
“That is why it is a bit disappointing.”
However, Fantasia said there was nothing wrong with Daniher’s work ethic.
“He’s probably one of the hardest-working when he’s at the club, and I think he’s got the work-life balance really good,” Fantasia said in June.
“You need a break away from footy you can’t just be footy-footy-footy, otherwise you will go insane.”
Port Adelaide believes Fantasia will eventually ask for a trade back home but as of Monday were yet to be told of his official request.
The speedster has told people close to him that he wants to get home in this trade period and will never have a better chance given Daniher’s high-profile want-away request will take most of the limelight.
But Fantasia was meeting new managers today ahead of a decision either way, with
Port Adelaide still in the dark on Monday night.
It meant Essendon wasn’t even willing to discuss potential terms for the 24-year-old, with the Power holding picks No.10 and 29.
North Melbourne, Essendon and St Kilda have all expressed interest in 199cm swingman Dougal Howard.
But no club put a trade proposal to the Power about Howard, with Port Adelaide telling him he will play as a key forward if he honours his contract next year.
Originally published as Essendon vows to play hardball with Sydney on Joe Daniher