More like lucrative 3rd party deals.
Mitchell watch
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I would be looking to get into the top 7 in this year's draft, which probably means getting the GWS (Collingwood) 1st pick (now pick 7) or better. With that pick we should be able to get Andrew McGrath, a very quick, evasive and skillful small defender or midfielder who I see as a future replacement for Nick Smith. Trading Tom Mitchell could be part of getting this done as this is roughly equivalent of what Tom's draft pick value should be. GWS may need value points to secure their top end academy picks this year, so even a Hawthorn trade could get those points, especially if Hill goes to a Perth club. If McGrath is chosen earlier, it would almost certainly mean that tall forward Todd Marshall will still be available and wouldn't be a bad choice either.
Given the depth of our midfield, this would be a preferable option to re-signing Tom. This is no reflection on Tom as a person or a footballer, both of which I rate very highly. It's not even a matter of whether we can afford his salary requirements. It's just that from a team needs perspective we would be better served by replacing Tom with a quick and skillful halfback-midfielder, or a Key Forward in preparation for the post Buddy era.
Tom is a very strong contested ball winning midfielder, but in the next couple of years, when Mills, Heeney, Jones and Hewett should all be firing, we will be better off without Tom in the side. He'll be winning the ball off of our own players more than the opposition.Comment
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For anyone grappling with the concept of whether Tom will stay, can anyone think of any examples of high profile players that have put re-signing off till the end of the year and actually re-signed?He ate more cheese, than time allowedComment
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Not really relevant other than that I'm watching dogs v pies sans Cloke - but man that josh dunkley looks and plays like a Swan (ie his looks plus he his tough with questionable disposal). I think a lot of us will feel conflicted as his career progresses.Comment
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We will be forever comparing him with Leonardis and Dawson.Comment
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I'm sure a deal was done that we would only take him if another non-Victorian club picked him. To be truthful, at the moment he would still be waiting for a debut at the Swans.Those who have the greatest power to hurt us are those we love.Comment
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What number did he play last night Barry. I saw the last qtr with the sound down
Great contest"be tough, only when it gets tough"
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If you've never jumped from one couch to the other to save yourself from lava then you didn't have a childhoodComment
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We don't have any senior games to measure Newman on, but based on how they compared at NEAFL level, I would think he would be at least as good as Biggs. We need to find a spot to him. O'Riordan won't be far behind. Rose will work out the few kinks in his game and is close to AFL ready. Reid, Talia, Abe Davis and Zak Jones are on the sidelines with injury. Laidler and Marsh will struggle to break into the senior team. So who goes out of our current side to make room?
These list management questions go beyond wanting to keep good players. It's more about the kind of affordable team you can put together that can produce the best results. It's a worthwhile exercise to 'get the magnets out' and try to put together a 2017 team; then see how many are still on the sidelines.Comment
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