Gold Coast Suns considering shock bid for Jack Martin in AFL pre-season draft

Gold Coast are considering making the audacious move of selecting wantaway Sun Jack Martin in the AFL pre-season draft despite the $1 million price tag that comes with his first year.

GOLD Coast are considering making the audacious move of selecting wantaway Sun Jack Martin in the AFL pre-season draft despite the $1 million price tag that comes with his first year.

Martin delisted himself from Gold Coast on Monday and applied for the AFL pre-season draft, to be held on Thursday, November 28.

The 24-year-old didn’t get his desired move to Carlton during the recent trade period and his demands for a five-year, $3 million deal – with $1 million for the first year of his services – are part of his bid to ensure the Suns and Melbourne, who hold the first two picks of the draft, don’t pick him.

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But the Suns are contemplating making the shock decision to take up the offer, with a senior Gold Coast official refusing to rule out picking the player who could walk for nothing after demanding a first-round draft pick in return for Martin during the trade period.

Gold Coast have only just started to get their salary cap in order and taking on Martin’s huge contract, even for a year, would be risky.

Jack Martin of the Suns runs the ball during the round eight AFL match between the Gold Coast Suns and the Melbourne Demons at Metricon Stadium on May 11, 2019 in Gold Coast, Australia. (Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images)

Meanwhile, the Gold Coast Suns are pushing on with their current pre-season program despite warnings from health authorities about the risk of exposure to dangerous air quality levels.

The bushfires raging across South East Queensland has resulted in a thick smoke haze that has blanketed the region.

It has prompted warnings from Queensland’s chief health officer Jeanette Young to encourage residents in the area to restrict their activity outside.

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But the Suns AFL franchise has made no changes to their pre-season training program so far with the club confident their coaching department and medical team will keep the groups safe.

Pre-season training brings with it the most gruelling period of work for players and the heat of Queensland brings with it even more challenges for the likes of Gold Coast and Brisbane.

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Add to that the air pollution and the players will be under the pump while exerting themselves for hours at time.

Gold Coast held one of their biggest sessions for the week on Monday, when the air pollution was worse than Beijing, and completed a light skills session today before another large one on Friday.