Adam Cooney explains why not all players love footy, and how to make it fun again

BRETT Deledio says he has fallen out of love with footy. That is no surprise, writes Adam Cooney. But it doesn’t have to be like that (spoiler alert: ice baths are in big trouble).

AS I lay by the pool in my private Seminyak villa last week, iPhone in my left, Bintang firmly grasped in my right, scrolling through my Twitter feed as trade after trade dropped, I realised I hadn’t been this happy or relaxed for years.

It may have been the fact that I was in Bali, it was 31C, there were no kids hanging off me, my villa manager Komang was fetching my fifth Bintang for the afternoon (actually, yes, that had a lot to do with it!).

But the main reason was I wasn’t a slave to football any more.

I’m going to let you in on a little secret — most AFL players don’t love playing footy.

I was interested but not surprised to hear Brett Deledio say he had lost his love for the game at Richmond.

I missed my daughter Evie's first steps because we played interstate that week.

Through my own experience I would estimate that 8-12 players at every club really love their footy, the rest play for a variety of reasons.

I fell out of love with the game years ago.

I’ve always loved watching footy on TV, but when you’re a player it just consumes your whole life. It’s 24/7/365.

I was always thinking about footy and what foods I had to eat at what times, how much to eat so as not to put on weight, what fluids I had to drink and my sleep routines.

I missed a lot of family functions, weddings and birthdays. I missed my daughter Evie’s first steps because we played interstate that week.

Brett Deledio hopes a trade to GWS will rekindle his passion for footy. Picture: Colleen Petch

There is a perception that playing AFL footy is a dream job with huge salaries, free clothes, free drinks at nightclubs and sponsor deals, but this is the exception rather than the rule.

Unless you’re of the Patty Dangerfield ilk, who no doubt receive many of these perks, the standard AFL battler rarely gets any privileges like this.

The reality for most AFL players on a list goes like this. My first case study is former Carlton and Bulldogs defender Mark Austin. Mark was your classic AFL battler. He spent eight years on an AFL list (twice the average AFL career span). He played 44 games for two goals.

During this time his highest base salary was $65,000 when he was coming off the rookie list at the Bulldogs, and even then he had to buy his own boots (he was an average kick so couldn’t get a boot deal!).

Mark was delisted at the end of 2014 with his body ruined and moved into the finance industry after spending most of his savings each year in Las Vegas on footy trips.

Case study No. 2 is Matt Egan. Matt was an extremely talented footballer. Drafted by the Cats in 2005, he was an All-Australian by 2007. Unfortunately, he sustained a navicular injury in Round 22 just before Geelong’s final series, resulting in surgery to insert screws into his foot and forcing him to miss the Cats’ 2007 premiership.

Mark Austin battled his way to 44 AFL games. Picture: Jono Searle

Matt Egan’s career was cut short by a foot injury.

Due to his injury, Matt had to go get the bones in his foot fused together and was told his career was over and he would never run again. I can’t imagine how hard this would be to hear as an athlete moving into the peak of his career — not only that it’s all over but that you can never run again, not even jog. It would be heartbreaking.

Stories like this are all too common in AFL and are clear examples of why players get worn down physically and emotionally.

I realise I sound a bit like a spoiled brat writing this, particularly after my first paragraph outlines how lucky I am to be able to afford to go on a Bali holiday, all because I was rewarded well financially from football. But footy is all business now and very rarely do the players get a chance to enjoy themselves and the game.

So I’ve got a few ideas that the AFL Players Association must include in the next collective bargaining agreement to bring back some joy for the lads:

1. Abandon ice baths. They do nothing anyway.

2. Bring back presos! After any game with a seven or eight-day break, hold a compulsory function post-game (like the good old days) with a few beers and a chance to unwind together. Coaches must pretend they like all their players even after a loss. Award a $50 voucher for best-on and a meat raffle surely has to be given away.

Gold Coast players (from left) Jesse Lonergan, Brendan Matera and Tim Sumner take an ice bath during a recovery session. Is this really necessary? Picture: Glenn Hampson

3. No target times for time-trials on day one of pre-season. Sure, run them for the data, but players spend most of the off-season worrying about running a PB half way through October. It’s unnecessary.

4. Skinfolds to be completed only after three weeks of pre-season (let the boys have a blowout, there’s plenty of time to get skinny!).

5. No meeting should ever go for longer than 30 minutes. Ever.

The players don’t concentrate for longer than that anyway. Woosha actually had this rule for the Essendon boys this year and our meetings were punchy and to the point. Well done, John.

That’s just a start but I think a few of these ideas would help keep the boys loving their footy and bring a bit of fun back to the game.

I’m looking forward to the feedback from this article!