Why West Coast hasn’t put paycheck in front of Oscar Allen

List managers are circling Oscar Allen as the Eagles refuse to put a long, expensive deal in front of their captain. Jon Ralph looks at the seven list bungles that have left West Coast gun shy.

They are the seven disastrous long-term deals at West Coast that might deliver Oscar Allen on a silver platter for Hawthorn or Brisbane.

In a week in which the Eagles co-captain was pilloried for his clandestine meeting with Sam Mitchell, suitors like Hawthorn were the only true winners.

Allan’s reputation and leadership bona fides were shredded and West Coast was pitched as heartless for not coming to the party on a fat new free agency deal.

By year’s end it might be totally obvious to all parties that he should leave to secure the Eagles a top five free agency compensation selection.

But what has been lost in the discussions is the actual reason for the Eagles’ reticence to offer Allen the kind of mega-deal he requires to stay.

Out of contract West Coast captain Oscar Allen addresses the media after calls to step down over meeting with Hawks coach Sam Mitchell

The Herald Sun reported in November the club and player were at an impasse over West Coast’s reluctance to offer the kind of six or seven year deal that would see him stay.

One reason is the knee injury that saw him play only 11 games last year and will require extensive medicals for the suitors who will eventually lodge long-term deals for Allen.

But dig deeper and the new philosophy from list boss Matt Clarke and CEO Don Pyke makes much more sense.

Since the 2018 premiership the Eagles have torched untold millions on long-term deals for underperforming stars who either didn’t play much or didn’t earn their megabucks.

When you assess the wreckage of those deals the Allen impasse makes so much more sense.

They cannot offer him a million dollars a year to 2032 with worries over his durability that impedes their free agency chase for Chad Warner in 2027 or bid to re-sign Harley Reid.

Those contracts include many of the club’s biggest names and premiership heroes.

Allen is fully aware of the Eagles’ position and so while the timing of his meeting with Sam Mitchell was poor he would argue he was driven to explore his options.

His mediocre form will give the Eagles even more pause as they assess his contract worth.

If he leaves the Eagles – which seems increasingly likely after the week’s events – it will be because West Coast have a risk tolerance much lower than Hawthorn and Brisbane after getting burnt so many times in recent years.

Originally published as Why West Coast hasn’t put paycheck in front of Oscar Allen