Seven clubs hunting Collingwood’s Jordan de Goey but the young gun is favoured to stay a Magpie
ONE of the hottest players in the AFL, Jordan de Goey, has seven clubs chasing him if he chooses to leave Collingwood at the end of the season and talks are on hold until after the bye break to determine how much he’s worth.
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CARLTON, North Melbourne and St Kilda are among seven clubs in the market for Jordan de Goey if he decides to leave Collingwood.
The Magpies are clearly favoured to retain the emerging star and they will get a better indication of de Goey’s intention when they meet his management about Round 15.
De Goey’s booming form has prompted clubs to inquire about his plans.
There’s been no indication of a financial offer from any of the seven clubs.
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It is estimated de Goey, who is just 22 and has played 56 games, could be offered anywhere between $650,000 a year to stay at Collingwood and up to $800,000 a year to leave.
A long-term deal of six years could push the money towards $5 million all up.
Both Collingwood and de Goey’s manager Ben Niall agreed to postpone talks until after the bye breaks.
Niall told the Herald Sun in April: “We are not entering any conversations. We are putting everything off until at least mid-year and maybe until the end of the year.’’
In the next six weeks, Niall and Collingwood will collect all relevant information on de Goey.
They include, on Collingwood’s behalf, de Goey’s behavioural improvement, his professionalism, training standards and sustained form.
De Goey is not drinking alcohol and continues to help the homeless at weekends as part of the fallout from a drink-driving incident earlier this year, which also earned the youngster an indefinite ban from the club.
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Teammate Adam Treloar on Wednesday night said de Goey would understand he owes the club.
“I think in himself he would think that he owes the club a bit because of the amount of faith the club and the boys have put in him,’’ Treloar said on Fox Footy.
“I think in saying that, we’ve done that because we see the character that he is first and foremost, but we see the influence he has on our group.
“When he is playing the way that he has been playing and that’s creating contests up forward and kicking goals for us, that’s exactly what we want him doing.
“I’m very, very sure that come the end of the year we are going to see Jordan de Goey re-sign and dominate for years to come.”
People close to de Goey say his off-field behaviour since his drink-driving incident has been exemplary.
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By the same stage, it’s anticipated Niall will have received an indication from rival clubs about how much they are willing to pay de Goey and over what period, which will give Niall an indication of de Goey’s market worth.
If de Goey is interested in a rival’s offer, Niall’s next role will be exploring how a trade can be worked.
The speculation about de Goey’s future has not dampened Collingwood’s confidence of keeping him.
“We’re really confident with the environment that we’re building around the place,” Buckley said on the weekend.
“We love his instincts and we love his competitiveness.
“He’s not going to be a buttoned up, tie up, type player, we love his rough edges and we’re continuing to work with him to help him understand how beneficial he can be to the team.’’
De Goey has worked closely with Collingwood’s leaders this year, including the coach, football boss Geoff Walsh, leadership and culture manager Nick Maxwell and player development manager Brent Macaffer.
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