AFL trades 2015: Melbourne needs to find support for Jesse Hogan
THE next two months are critical in Melbourne’s fight to keep Jesse Hogan. Herald Sun reporter Jay Clark on what Melbourne must do to ensure the young gun stays a Demon for the long term.
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THE next two months are critical in Melbourne’s fight to keep Jesse Hogan.
When it comes to Melbourne’s most important re-signing in a decade or more, money is unlikely to be much of a factor for Hogan.
Simply, the hulking spearhead will be worth the best part of $1 million a season wherever he plays.
And yes, Melbourne can absolutely afford it, in a re-sign-at-all-costs kind of a way.
But for the Demons, what will be even more important than the size of Hogan’s next house is finding the ace goal kicker a big-bodied, forward-line friend.
Over the next eight weeks, it is Melbourne’s top list management priority.
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Hogan, 20, was one of the stories of the AFL season, kicking 44 goals after missing a year with injury.
He is a leader, an insatiable competitor and the bedrock for Melbourne’s plans to rise from a decade out of the finals. He has a great relationship with Demons’ coach-in-waiting Simon Goodwin.
But he desperately needs another marking target to help share the enormous burden he shoulders inside 50m.
Think Roughead-Franklin. Carey-McKernan. Lucas-Lloyd. Brereton-Dunstall. Brown and Lynch.
According to the talent experts, the 195cm Hogan can join that group. He is that special.
But the biggest threat to Hogan’s future at Melbourne, other than the obvious continuation of the Dees’ upward climb up the ladder, will be leaving him one-out in the goal square for the next 12 months.
And the potential departure of high-flyer Jeremy Howe in the next few weeks only makes the need for some immediate aerial support more urgent, after missing out on re-signed Adelaide mobile half forward Tom Lynch last month.
In his third season, Hogan was the clear No. 1 inside-50m target (27.7 per cent of the forward entries), followed by Cameron Pedersen (20.5), Chris Dawes (17.6), Jeff Garlett (13.5) and Howe (6.6), according to Champion Data.
Pedersen could be delisted, Howe sounds like he is out the door and Dawes finished 19th in the best and fairest, kicking 11 goals from 14 games. Jack Watts is more of utility, and not a spearhead.
Other than that, Melbourne’s remaining key forward option is Jack Fitzpatrick, who was shifted into defence in the VFL.
The Dees’ next generation midfield is rich with quality youngsters and we’ve still hardly seen No. 2 pick Christian Petracca in his comeback from a knee reconstruction.
Before hurting his knee, Petracca did things at Melbourne training that made the coaches giddy.
If the powerful midfielder is not already favourite for next year’s Rising Star award, he will be close, giving the Dees a genuine chance to go back-to-back in the coveted award.
Petracca to Hogan is a reason to keep the faith and from Melbourne fans’ perspective, it will be worth the price of admission to catch a glimpse of these two in action together in 2016.
But as much hype as there has been about this year’s Rising Star winner Hogan after his sensational third (but really first) season, Melbourne’s forward line needs a talent injection. Big-time.
It will be written all over Todd Viney’s recruiting clipboard.
Coach Paul Roos flagged the club would be aggressive next month, with almost every player on the Demons’ list tradeable if it can help Melbourne achieve its stated mission to play finals next year.
Yes, that includes Jack Watts, but Melbourne won’t sell him for cheap, especially considering he has probably had his best season.
The good thing for Melbourne is, even if the club cannot latch on to another mature-age goal kicker in the exchange period (and the genuine options are limited) this is not a bad draft to be looking for a key forward at the top end.
Geelong Falcon Charlie Curnow (brother of Blues’ Ed) will be around the mark, along with 196cm Eastern forward Sam Weideman (grandson of Collingwood great Murray) 191cm South Australian Ryan Burton and 200cm Gippsland goal kicker Harry McKay.
All will be talked about as quality forward 50m options in the lead-up to the draft over the next two months.
Hogan doesn’t come out of contract until the end of 2017 and all indications are that he loves the environment, telling the Herald Sun in May he believed the club was headed for sustained success.
“With the list and resources we have around us, we can develop into a team that’s a juggernaut,” Hogan said.
“If we can (do it) from where we are now, then, you can look back at this and say ‘look at that’.
“We can be one of those (success) stories that everyone wants to be.”
Hogan is central to that plan. And with Fremantle already making a $700,000 a year play for Greater Western Sydney forward Cameron McCarthy, rivals will also swoon for WA-born Hogan.
Clubs are on the lookout for trade targets 18 months in advance, these days.
For Melbourne, the foundation work for Hogan’s contract extension is already well under way, as the club works to beef-up the marking options around him.
As exciting as he is, Hogan can’t be the only forward line hero in red and blue.
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