Trade Whispers / Rumours and Confirmations

[dimelb]

There was a time when people wanted to get back to Melbourne, and we lost a few likely lads: Big Anthony and Shannon Grant for instance, people you'd really rather keep.
What's changed is the environment: respect for the club, success, constantly improving facilities, the re-emergence of the Bloods and so on. That means the go-home factor is reduced, sometimes quite substantially. But it can still matter to some, for whatever reasons. If that's the case, then we have the skilled staff who can make the best of it; I'm happy to leave it with them.
Having said that I definitely want to keep Smithy. He's a fine player, and will only get better, especially if he can get regular time in the midfield.

[Matt80]

People may want to move to Melbourne for Playing, Media and Business opportunities! Ask Jesse White.

Some players want to come to Sydney to get to the beach!

Depends on the individual!

[Dosser]

Yep, there is big money to be made in Melbourne by cashing in on the fact you are an AFL player - money that cant be made in Sydney.

[Xie Shan]

No offence but pretty poor thread from someone who's been on the boards for a while. Gun player but I shudder to think what the Bombers would want for him assuming they were willing to let him go. Signed a new 2 year deal earlier this year too. Not to mention the ASADA investigation hanging over their heads still. Move on, nothing to see here.

[Jewels]

I honestly don't understand the reasons thrown up for some of these players to move home. 'Family roots'. So everyone just stays in the town they're born in? Why the @@@@ would you want to play for the Demons, Saints, Dogs, Roos or many other teams when you play for the Swans, with elite facilities in the best city in the country, great weather, in which you have heaps of friends anyway and travel to Melbourne countless times a yea anyway? Why this sheer inability to wait until they retire in their late 20s or early 30s to move back? Can't handle a few young years away from stuff you have your whole life to obsess over?

I get p'd off when I hear this all the time. I'd say if the Swans are not good enough for you, go back to the bleak grey grid and play with some team that doesn't even deserve to play at AFL level in 2014 and get nowhere your whole career.

I agree with what you say Bloodthirsty but there are a few things I find odd about the Smith homesick theory.
He has been here for six years now and whilst I'm not saying you wouldn't be homesick after six years, I find it odd that after coming here at such a young age, being nurtured in the environment he is in with this footy club, plus the amount of times that he gets to go back to Melbourne during the year, that he would either become or still be homesick after such a lengthy amount of time. Also his position in the leadership group is something that I know for a fact he feels very honoured and committed to and I have to wonder why he would contemplate giving that up to go to a club where he would simply be just a part of the group.
Of course it could be a family issue that would justifiably override everything else.

[Captain]

I love Smith and hope he stays but Smith for Varcoe would be a definite win.

Much easier to find defensive players then silky smooth quick attacking players who can finish.

With all our attacking players, maybe Horse is throwing defence out the window Who will score more then us!

[Plugger46]

Agree with Bloodthirsty. If there's a family illness or something similar then fair enough, but if it's going home just to go home they need to grow up imo.

If you could perform your profession in your home city for roughly the same money, would you take the opportunity to move?

We just recruited a bloke who wants to live in Sydney. If one of our players decided they want to live somewhere else, I'd be disappointed to lose them but I wouldn't be cracking it.

Everyone is different. Just telling people to grow up is simplistic in my view.

[Xie Shan]

Much easier to find defensive players then silky smooth quick attacking players who can finish.

Can't agree, defence wins premierships and the silky smooth attacking players are often the most inconsistent. Varcoe has had injuries as well, while Smith is one of the leaders of the club and regularly finishes in the top 10 in our B&F.

[Plugger46]

I love Smith and hope he stays but Smith for Varcoe would be a definite win.

Much easier to find defensive players then silky smooth quick attacking players who can finish.

With all our attacking players, maybe Horse is throwing defence out the window Who will score more then us!

Injury prone and I question his finishing ability - couple of really bad misses in the finals.

[woo]

No offence but pretty poor thread from someone who's been on the boards for a while. Gun player but I shudder to think what the Bombers would want for him assuming they were willing to let him go. Signed a new 2 year deal earlier this year too. Not to mention the ASADA investigation hanging over their heads still. Move on, nothing to see here.

OMG....Did someone run over your cat this morning?
My advise is to go back to bed, roll over to the other side and get up again.

Anyways....I just saw him, and wanted to say I did. Sorry it was such a poor feed. It was however an interesting sight how happy a player from interstate looks here without being hassled. Nice kid who needs a serious haircut

[Jewels]

OMG....Did someone run over your cat this morning?
My advise is to go back to bed, roll over to the other side and get up again.

Haha great retort

[Xie Shan]

OMG....Did someone run over your cat this morning?
My advise is to go back to bed, roll over to the other side and get up again.

Anyways....I just saw him, and wanted to say I did. Sorry it was such a poor feed. It was however an interesting sight how happy a player from interstate looks here without being hassled. Nice kid who needs a serious haircut

I don't like cats and I woke up on the right side of bed this morning thanks

Personally I think the chances of us landing a Heppell are pretty remote, I just got a bit annoyed when I saw the Smith rumour that was going around. So I probably took out my frustrations in this thread a bit, sorry.

But the players do have it good here in Sydney I agree, nice weather, beaches, don't get hassled as much, though apparently we need to get better coffee according to Buddy

[Industrial Fan]

I love Smith and hope he stays but Smith for Varcoe would be a definite win.

Much easier to find defensive players then silky smooth quick attacking players who can finish.

With all our attacking players, maybe Horse is throwing defence out the window Who will score more then us!

Strongly disagree. Smith is the unheralded cornerstone of the defense. Varcoe is injury prone and Smith has been extremely durable.

Would be a massive trade win for Geelong if that went through as a straight swap.

[DK_]

I honestly don't understand the reasons thrown up for some of these players to move home. 'Family roots'. So everyone just stays in the town they're born in? Why the @@@@ would you want to play for the Demons, Saints, Dogs, Roos or many other teams when you play for the Swans, with elite facilities in the best city in the country, great weather, in which you have heaps of friends anyway and travel to Melbourne countless times a yea anyway? Why this sheer inability to wait until they retire in their late 20s or early 30s to move back? Can't handle a few young years away from stuff you have your whole life to obsess over?

I get p'd off when I hear this all the time. I'd say if the Swans are not good enough for you, go back to the bleak grey grid and play with some team that doesn't even deserve to play at AFL level in 2014 and get nowhere your whole career.

I'm with you. I spent 12 years in the Navy getting posted all over the country, pretty much the same life period an AFL player's career. The only time getting back to my home town came into my calculations over that time was in the final two years when I had children (even then it was only one of a number of considerations). Why a 24yo single man even cares is beyond me. It's meant to be the period of your life when you spread your wings and your parents are meant to be pleasantly surprised if you call them once every 6 months or so.

I suspect that in the majority of cases, it's a throw away line meant to conceal their real motivations. Like "I'm keen for a new challenge" rather than "my boss is an a-hole". For example, the reaction from Crows fans probably would have been even worse if Tippett had said "Adelaide's a hole and I don't want to live here anymore". Jolly's probably a good example of an understandable exception.

[Triple B]

Strongly disagree. Smith is the unheralded cornerstone of the defense. Varcoe is injury prone and Smith has been extremely durable.

Would be a massive trade win for Geelong if that went through as a straight swap.

+1