Jon Ralph: Is Dustin Martin prepared to risk the shame of a loss to Father Time at the Suns?

If Dustin Martin does move to the Suns, he’s not Dusty the Deserter, he doesn’t owe the Tiger army anything, writes Jon Ralph. But there’s a key question the legend must answer.

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA – AUGUST 24: Retiree Dustin Martin of the Tigers looks on while participating in a lap of honour during the 2024 AFL Round 24 match between the Richmond Tigers and the Gold Coast SUNS at The Melbourne Cricket Ground on August 24, 2024 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

Is Dustin Martin prepared to end his career with egg splashed all over his face?

That is the only question he really needs to answer as he ponders a final fling with Gold Coast after his “retirement” from Richmond just weeks ago.

Martin doesn’t have to care about the cynical Tigers fans watching him treading an identical path to Damien Hardwick – from burnt-out to invigorated in a convenient slice of timing.

He definitely shouldn’t believe he owes Richmond anything, given the most extraordinary legacy as footy’s best finals player this century.

He certainly isn’t Dusty the Deserter after three premierships, 302 games and three Norm Smith medals. So the only thing he really needs to consider is whether he is actually able to get through a full 2025 season with his new club, given the available evidence of 2024.

Could Dusty reunite with Damien Hardwick? Picture: Michael Klein

Martin finished the season with a dodgy back, having missed multiple games with old-man calf concerns and as a diminished presence wherever he was stationed.

He couldn’t come out to play after five-day breaks, he didn’t play through niggles and, in the end, his retirement was perfectly timed given his reduced output.

His teammates knew weeks into the season that he had lost interest at times as he tried to find ways to spark the fire in the belly. Only he knows how much he had checked out; how much he had conserved his body for a Gold Coast stint. But if he is truly prepared to risk some gloss taken off his spectacular reputation with a single year that could go pear-shaped after 15 glorious seasons at the Tigers, then the Suns should be all-in.

As Mark Robinson reported in his Herald Sun exclusive on Friday, it was Martin who came to the Suns in recent weeks to ask about their interest – even if it was not their first conversation in recent years.

He has been overseas golfing in Vietnam and Thailand and at least is open to a conversation about what next year would look like.

Martin came to the Suns himself about the move. Pic: Michael Klein

The Suns would need to put in a power of work on whether he truly has the motivation, how he might fit into their side, if his body would actually stand up.

It can’t be a marketing stunt. And Martin has to be able to withstand the rigours of a season because there is no point recruiting him to win finals when Gold Coast has failed to make it to September across its 14-year history.

They played at 10 different venues this year – they were away from the Gold Coast for 13 of 23 games, compared to a Richmond side that played 13 at the MCG.

Gold Coast has tried desperately in recent seasons to throw off its tag as a retirement home for ageing players to finish their careers while topping up their savings.

What would convince them is if Martin was prepared to play for a fee as small as $300,000.

It would prove to them he wasn’t in it for the money.

Wasn’t in it because he was daunted about what comes next after being institutionalised like so many AFL footballers who have spent their adult lives doing only one job. If he did flame out, the Suns would have burnt a single list spot and a tiny fraction of their salary cap.

The clubs would need to work out a way to get him to the Suns – if he has signed a “Form 40” officially retiring then he can’t actually be a free agent.

But the Tigers would not quibble about finding a way for him to move to the Suns.

So Martin and the Suns will feel each other out, and Richmond fans should allow him to go with their blessing. He is the ultimate risk-reward proposition – all upside if the Suns can get him for cheap.

Father Time is undefeated. So now he has to decide if he is prepared to risk the embarrassment of what might go wrong to add one final chapter to his remarkable career.