Adelaide Crows adamant they won’t trade Patrick Dangerfield, but no word on new contract
ADELAIDE has point-blank stated Patrick Dangerfield will not be traded but refused to say whether it has offered him a new deal.
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ADELAIDE has point-blank stated that superstar midfielder Patrick Dangerfield will not be traded.
But the club is refusing to say whether it has offered him a new deal to keep him at West Lakes beyond 2015 when he becomes a free agent.
The Crows enter next week’s AFL trade period with their biggest name coming out of contract next season and Victorian clubs circling amid speculation he would consider a return home.
TRADE WHISPERS: WHO’S GOING WHERE?
Melbourne is prepared to offer two first-round draft picks for the 24-year-old and Collingwood has indicated an interest in him as a replacement for the departing Dayne Beams.
Crows head of football David Noble categorically denied any suggestion Adelaide would consider trading Dangerfield rather than risk losing him as a free agent next year.
The bullocking on-baller who finished fourth in this year’s Brownlow Medal has indicated to the club that he is happy and settled in Adelaide and wants to stay - a sentiment reiterated by his manager Paul Connors this week.
“Make no mistake, Patrick Dangerfield will not be traded in coming weeks,” Noble said.
“The club is more than comfortable with where things are at, we are having discussions with Patrick, his family, his management and have been throughout his time in Adelaide.”
But Noble would not say whether Adelaide had tabled a new contract to Dangerfield - or any other player on the list including fellow stars Rory Sloane and Taylor Walker who also come off contract next year.
“Like all players and their contracts, we are not going to enter into specifics in the public arena,” Noble said.
Connors declined to comment on the situation on Friday.
Retired Crows superstar Tony Modra said he did not think Dangerfield would be rushed into signing a new deal because of public or media expectation.
And Modra said it was unrealistic to expect Dangerfield to commit to the club without knowing who its next senior coach would be.
At the height of his career in the early 1990s, Modra was the biggest sports star in the state and while Dangerfield is not in that realm, his future has drawn widespread interest from fans, the media and rival clubs.
Victorian newspaper the Bendigo Advertiser published an open letter from one of its sports reporters to Dangerfield pleading for him to return to Victoria and join Collingwood.
“When you go out in public people ask what’s going on because everyone wants to know what you’re doing,” Modra said.
“But if you know what you’re doing then you’re comfortable.
“I think everyone is just waiting for the announcement on who’s coaching the Adelaide Football Club in 2015 and I’m sure they’ll (players) be kept in the loop.
“I hope he (Dangerfield) stays, he’s a very important part of the club like a lot of the players and I’m sure they’ll be getting together to know where the club is at.
“At the moment with not knowing the coach it’s hard but the club isn’t going to mess around.
“They’re very professional and are going to make sure they make the right decision this time around.”
Originally published as Adelaide Crows adamant they won’t trade Patrick Dangerfield, but no word on new contract
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