Goodes puts buddy on notice.

[MightyBloods]

I'm as willing as the next Swans fan to embrace a "Melbourne media hates us" line. Most times it is true (because most articles are written to appeal to Collingwood supporters). But in this case I don't think so. I have a lot of thoughts and misgivings about the Buddy deal. Some are just personal instinct/bias, some are more objectively based. But here they are, for whatever they are worth. I hope I am proved wrong and he is a roaring success. But I have a bad feeling.

1. The Melbourne media have been all over Buddy for years. Caro Wilson loathes him already. It isn't anti-Swans bias at work. The real question is just whether he is a Fev-esque knob who deserves it or an unjustly maligned innocent. Crying "bias" is an easy way of avoiding hard questions. I just hope that none of the rumours that circulated when he was a Hawk were true because if even a small proportion are right then our "no dickheads" policy and renowned culture are under major threat.
2. On an unrelated subject, the apple don't fall far from the tree. Anyone seen a picture of Buddy's old man? And if it is true that you know a man by the company he keeps then I'm pretty concerned. He seems to favour the absolute dregs of rugby as companions.
3. Do we really need him? We won the 2012 GF when he was against us. Since then we have added the Big Tip to our forward line. And frankly he didn't contribute much to the 2013 Hawks flag.
4. He has a genuinely terrible kicking technique. While other factors were also important, I doubt we would have won the 2012 GF if it wasn't for his technical flaws. Despite the obvious talents he has, I am not sure that - overall - having those flaws on our side is such a good thing. And whether they are worth the biggest contract in football history is a whole other question.
5. He is the antithesis of the Bloods ethos. Is he a Brett Kirk Cortina? I think not. A big part of the joy of being a Swans supporter has been being a Cortina driver who wins against the odds. We have been a team that has thrived on a "sum of the parts is greater than the whole" ethos and now we are suddenly buying into the polar opposite philosophy. What car are we being asked to embrace here? I hope it is an enduring classic like the Porsche 911, but I fear we have bought a flashy, unreliable DeLorean (spare us your Back to the Future analogies). And by the way,
6. Does anyone seriously believe Buddy will play until he is 36? I fear his contract will be a salary cap millstone around our necks many years after he has become an "ambassador" for the Swans or something equally spurious. (Yes, I am familiar with the Alistair Lynch example but I don't think he is Alistair Lynch. As he shows every pre-season, Buddy is a fat lazy dude by nature, hiding in an incredibly gifted shell. Sooner or later the inner fat lazy dude will take over, and with a massively backended contract where is the incentive now for him to keep flogging himself unto age 36?) If we were going to offer a Godfather deal like this, wouldn't waiting until Jeremy Cameron's contract was next up for renewal have been a smarter move?
7. I fear we have paid WAY over the odds. All the articles about the vast amounts GWS were going to pay him proved to be laughably inaccurate (like most articles in the press, but that is a different rant). I think we have been played like a violin by his management. We could have got him for a HEAP less (and kept more depth in the process). The exodus of depth will bite at some point. And what will the massive investment in Buddy do to our ability to recruit other important ingredients ( eg a Teddy replacement) and retain rising stars (eg Tom Mitchell) when the time comes....sooner than we think.....
8. Even now, I don't think he is the player he once was. His overhead marking is non existent. In fact, he seems to struggle to lift his arms above shoulder level. There is a lot of lurking and staging, always a bad sign. He will produce brilliant moments, maybe even some brilliant periods, but we have bought a star that is already on the wane. I repeat my inner fat lazy dude theory.

I could go on but I won't. My point is clear. I think we have bought someone who is a nuff-nuff knob by nature who has never really had to try because he has been able to coast along on the strength of his incredible athletic gifts, who doesnt have the mental strength to start working hard now for the first time in his life and will fall off a cliff performance-wise when age and injury start to exert their influence on him.....which has already started to happen. I fear he is cultural poison who will tear a great team ethos and the work of twenty years to shreds. And I fear we have put all our eggs in the one overrated, waning and unneccessary basket, which will cripple our recruitment and retention for years.

Our club management has done a remarkable job since the early 90s to lift us to where we are now, and the Swans are one of the few enduring loves of my life, so I sincerely hope that they are right and I am wrong.

Unfortunately your summary doesn't take into account the profit the club will make regarding merchandising/memembership sales/Primetime media exposure to name a few. I heard recently that the club is selling approx 400 memberships a day MORE than this time last year. As soon as Buddy gets his guernsey number ...watch the merchandising sales hit the roof. No coincidence that Ch 7 and foxtel wanted more Swans games in TV primetime given Buddy as a new recruit...........the Club will make a very healthy profit financially in the early years from the whole deal.
.....and as far as 'impact the ground'...no one expects Buddy to play out the full 9 years. The contract length was a way of putting our competition off matching the deal and also a very clever way of managing our salary cap over the long term knowing that the salary cap will substantially increase in future years (another TV rights deal is due in approx 3 years). I'll be happy if Buddy gives us 6 good consistent years and more than happy he's no longer wearing the colours of one of our major competitors now and in the next few years.

Financially and brand wise (especially for a NSW based club) a masterstroke. Playing wise..time will tell.
I am prepared to back the club's judgement on this call even before he's played a game in the red and white.

ps Velour & Ruffles, are you Melb based? As anyone I speak to in Melb has no idea of how important marketing and brand is to our club in Sydney. We not only have to work for fans for our club but also to get fans to the AFL code. No Melb based friends of mine really understand the great challenge clubs in AFL developing states have.

[Legs Akimbo]

I'm as willing as the next Swans fan to embrace a "Melbourne media hates us" line. Most times it is true (because most articles are written to appeal to Collingwood supporters). But in this case I don't think so. I have a lot of thoughts and misgivings about the Buddy deal. Some are just personal instinct/bias, some are more objectively based. But here they are, for whatever they are worth. I hope I am proved wrong and he is a roaring success. But I have a bad feeling.

1. The Melbourne media have been all over Buddy for years. Caro Wilson loathes him already. It isn't anti-Swans bias at work. The real question is just whether he is a Fev-esque knob who deserves it or an unjustly maligned innocent. Crying "bias" is an easy way of avoiding hard questions. I just hope that none of the rumours that circulated when he was a Hawk were true because if even a small proportion are right then our "no dickheads" policy and renowned culture are under major threat.
2. On an unrelated subject, the apple don't fall far from the tree. Anyone seen a picture of Buddy's old man? And if it is true that you know a man by the company he keeps then I'm pretty concerned. He seems to favour the absolute dregs of rugby as companions.
3. Do we really need him? We won the 2012 GF when he was against us. Since then we have added the Big Tip to our forward line. And frankly he didn't contribute much to the 2013 Hawks flag.
4. He has a genuinely terrible kicking technique. While other factors were also important, I doubt we would have won the 2012 GF if it wasn't for his technical flaws. Despite the obvious talents he has, I am not sure that - overall - having those flaws on our side is such a good thing. And whether they are worth the biggest contract in football history is a whole other question.
5. He is the antithesis of the Bloods ethos. Is he a Brett Kirk Cortina? I think not. A big part of the joy of being a Swans supporter has been being a Cortina driver who wins against the odds. We have been a team that has thrived on a "sum of the parts is greater than the whole" ethos and now we are suddenly buying into the polar opposite philosophy. What car are we being asked to embrace here? I hope it is an enduring classic like the Porsche 911, but I fear we have bought a flashy, unreliable DeLorean (spare us your Back to the Future analogies). And by the way,
6. Does anyone seriously believe Buddy will play until he is 36? I fear his contract will be a salary cap millstone around our necks many years after he has become an "ambassador" for the Swans or something equally spurious. (Yes, I am familiar with the Alistair Lynch example but I don't think he is Alistair Lynch. As he shows every pre-season, Buddy is a fat lazy dude by nature, hiding in an incredibly gifted shell. Sooner or later the inner fat lazy dude will take over, and with a massively backended contract where is the incentive now for him to keep flogging himself unto age 36?) If we were going to offer a Godfather deal like this, wouldn't waiting until Jeremy Cameron's contract was next up for renewal have been a smarter move?
7. I fear we have paid WAY over the odds. All the articles about the vast amounts GWS were going to pay him proved to be laughably inaccurate (like most articles in the press, but that is a different rant). I think we have been played like a violin by his management. We could have got him for a HEAP less (and kept more depth in the process). The exodus of depth will bite at some point. And what will the massive investment in Buddy do to our ability to recruit other important ingredients ( eg a Teddy replacement) and retain rising stars (eg Tom Mitchell) when the time comes....sooner than we think.....
8. Even now, I don't think he is the player he once was. His overhead marking is non existent. In fact, he seems to struggle to lift his arms above shoulder level. There is a lot of lurking and staging, always a bad sign. He will produce brilliant moments, maybe even some brilliant periods, but we have bought a star that is already on the wane. I repeat my inner fat lazy dude theory.

I could go on but I won't. My point is clear. I think we have bought someone who is a nuff-nuff knob by nature who has never really had to try because he has been able to coast along on the strength of his incredible athletic gifts, who doesnt have the mental strength to start working hard now for the first time in his life and will fall off a cliff performance-wise when age and injury start to exert their influence on him.....which has already started to happen. I fear he is cultural poison who will tear a great team ethos and the work of twenty years to shreds. And I fear we have put all our eggs in the one overrated, waning and unneccessary basket, which will cripple our recruitment and retention for years.

Our club management has done a remarkable job since the early 90s to lift us to where we are now, and the Swans are one of the few enduring loves of my life, so I sincerely hope that they are right and I am wrong.

Pretty much sums up how I feel. Not even the pre-season and I feeling a bit odd about the whole thing. I have a dread of Lance jr turning up to the club looking like his old man. I have read these articles of hate and innuendo with a sense of bemusement. It's all just doesn't feel right - can this be a swans player?

I had thought we moved on from the Capper days (not that he ever got sloshed at the races and generates headlines). What's next? "Swannettes dance when Buddy gets off his fat arse and kicks a goal."

So much focus and investment in one player.

[Go Swannies]

Roos takes on the momentous task to turn around the Dees. The Swans take on the task of turning around Buddy's behaviour. You have to challenge yourself. And, as MB says, I expect a chunk of Buddy's salary has already been paid in increased memberships.

I've been in the RedBull bar with Buddy late in the day at the F1 GP and he was quiet and self-effacing. I'm sure he's been an idiot at times but don't think we don't/haven't had other lesser players who have done dumb things during a night on the town.

Summary: I'm prepared to wait and see how Buddy is as a a Swan rather than just on the bring Buddy down bandwagon. And I'll be excited to see him line up for us next year.

[ernie koala]

The contract length was a way of putting our competition off matching the deal and also a very clever way of managing our salary cap over the long term knowing that the salary cap will substantially increase in future years (another TV rights deal is due in approx 3 years).

Whilst I agree with you, regarding the financial and promotional value of Franklin, an increase in the salary cap will not help the club one iota.

Every club gets the increased salary cap. It doesn't matter how much it is.....

If we have $1 milion plus per year less to spend than the other clubs, due to paying out Franklins contract, we will be at a distinct disadvantage attracting and holding onto the best players. (ironic given our present cap situation)

[Primmy]

If Buddy does want 23 I doubt Lockyer will block it. But I hear number 19 is free......but that already has a 'name' attached to it. AND 23 to me is Matty Nicks, and he was a dead set favourite. 32 is taken.

10 and 11 are free.

Nah, I think he should take 24. Synchronicity, and form even though it has Jude's name attached for years to come.

[ugg]

If I was Lockyer and Buddy wanted 23 that badly, I would ask for a little financial incentive to change. After all, we know that Buddy can afford it

[spiffy-dude]

I wish we didn't sign up Lance. That way we could be still be a homogeneous and generic club with this over hyped culture. That way the majority of our fans can feel all smug when other clubs stars misbehave or sign up loud personalities. I wish the club continued on just being content in only having the small supporter base we have and not trying to break new supporters in by signing a very marketable player.

In fact i liked it when we were old cortinas covered in "I vote greens I have a conscious" stickers with other sanctimonious slogans and vegetarian/vegan messages while we scoffed at others. Now we are starting to look like BMW and Porshe 4wd owners.

I mean its just not fair!

Seriously people get used to it, the game that he returns 10.1 and we flog a top 2 team all will be forgotten, such is the emotional craziness of all AFL fans.

[Blood Tunnel]

Whilst I agree with you, regarding the financial and promotional value of Franklin, an increase in the salary cap will not help the club one iota.

Every club gets the increased salary cap. It doesn't matter how much it is.....

If we have $1 milion plus per year less to spend than the other clubs, due to paying out Franklins contract, we will be at a distinct disadvantage attracting and holding onto the best players. (ironic given our present cap situation)

In 5 years time when Buddy is getting 1.2 or 1.4 M, our main competitors will have a player or 2 demanding similar amounts from their club. What will Selwood of Geelong be on in 3 years for example? If prior to his next contract, someone comes knocking & offers him $8M for the final 5 years of his career, then the Cats are going to have to offer him at least $1M per year, don't you think? they also have Hawkins to worry about. So the one major positive out of this long term contract is the knowledge that it won't change & other contracts can be done accordingly. $1.4M could quite easily seem like a bargain in 4 or 5 years time in comparison to the contracts of the stars of the comp around that time.
It's quite feasible that there will be another player or two on 1.5-1.8 M per year.
5 years ago, not too many players were on 800K but that has increased significantly. It's only natural. Our main concern with Buddy is that he represents our club & his fellow team mates with respect & the respect will be returned ten fold.
If he gets that, then we'll all get along fine, whilst rubbing Hawk supporters' noses in it!

- - - Updated - - -

I wish we didn't sign up Lance. That way we could be still be a homogeneous and generic club with this over hyped culture. That way the majority of our fans can feel all smug when other clubs stars misbehave or sign up loud personalities. I wish the club continued on just being content in only having the small supporter base we have and not trying to break new supporters in by signing a very marketable player.

In fact i liked it when we were old cortinas covered in "I vote greens I have a conscious" stickers with other sanctimonious slogans and vegetarian/vegan messages while we scoffed at others. Now we are starting to look like BMW and Porshe 4wd owners.

I mean its just not fair!

Seriously people get used to it, the game that he returns 10.1 and we flog a top 2 team all will be forgotten, such is the emotional craziness of all AFL fans.

Here here!

[ernie koala]

In 5 years time when Buddy is getting 1.2 or 1.4 M, our main competitors will have a player or 2 demanding similar amounts from their club. What will Selwood of Geelong be on in 3 years for example? If prior to his next contract, someone comes knocking & offers him $8M for the final 5 years of his career, then the Cats are going to have to offer him at least $1M per year, don't you think? they also have Hawkins to worry about. So the one major positive out of this long term contract is the knowledge that it won't change & other contracts can be done accordingly. $1.4M could quite easily seem like a bargain in 4 or 5 years time in comparison to the contracts of the stars of the comp around that time.
It's quite feasible that there will be another player or two on 1.5-1.8 M per year.
5 years ago, not too many players were on 800K but that has increased significantly. It's only natural. Our main concern with Buddy is that he represents our club & his fellow team mates with respect & the respect will be returned ten fold.
If he gets that, then we'll all get along fine, whilst rubbing Hawk supporters' noses in it!

Your talking about what may happen in 5 years time....I'm talking about what may happen in 7 - 9 years time...

ie: When the Swans will still have to include his salary in their cap, even if he has finished playing......Big difference.

[Velour&Ruffles]

In 5 years time when Buddy is getting 1.2 or 1.4 M, our main competitors will have a player or 2 demanding similar amounts from their club. What will Selwood of Geelong be on in 3 years for example? If prior to his next contract, someone comes knocking & offers him $8M for the final 5 years of his career, then the Cats are going to have to offer him at least $1M per year, don't you think? they also have Hawkins to worry about. So the one major positive out of this long term contract is the knowledge that it won't change & other contracts can be done accordingly. $1.4M could quite easily seem like a bargain in 4 or 5 years time in comparison to the contracts of the stars of the comp around that time.
It's quite feasible that there will be another player or two on 1.5-1.8 M per year. 5 years ago, not too many players were on 800K but that has increased significantly. It's only natural. Our main concern with Buddy is that he represents our club & his fellow team mates with respect & the respect will be returned ten fold.
If he gets that, then we'll all get along fine, whilst rubbing Hawk supporters' noses in it!

- - - Updated - - -



Here here!

Yes, It's quite feasible that there will be another player or two on 1.5-1.8 M per year.

But the important difference will be that they will probably be taking the field and actually playing, whereas Buddy probably won't be. He'll just be taking up room in the salary cap.

[Chilcott]

Your talking about what may happen in 5 years time....I'm talking about what may happen in 7 - 9 years time...

ie: When the Swans will still have to include his salary in their cap, even if he has finished playing......Big difference.

Ernie, I'm sure we will manage. It may mean Kinnear will need to continue with his smart recruiting of players not getting a regular game at their club.

[jono2707]

As far as I understand that in later years, if Buddy retires, we are not required to pay out the remainder of his contract, which we would be of we delisted him. Is my understanding correct?

[Velour&Ruffles]

I wish we didn't sign up Lance. That way we could be still be a homogeneous and generic club with this over hyped culture. That way the majority of our fans can feel all smug when other clubs stars misbehave or sign up loud personalities. I wish the club continued on just being content in only having the small supporter base we have and not trying to break new supporters in by signing a very marketable player.

In fact i liked it when we were old cortinas covered in "I vote greens I have a conscious" stickers with other sanctimonious slogans and vegetarian/vegan messages while we scoffed at others. Now we are starting to look like BMW and Porshe 4wd owners.

I mean its just not fair!

Seriously people get used to it, the game that he returns 10.1 and we flog a top 2 team all will be forgotten, such is the emotional craziness of all AFL fans.

The game that he returns 10.1 will be a red letter day, because his usual return from 11 scoring shots would be 4.7

I hope you are right though. I will be cheering as loud as anyone.

[desredandwhite]

As far as I understand that in later years, if Buddy retires, we are not required to pay out the remainder of his contract, which we would be of we delisted him. Is my understanding correct?

I believe that we don't have to pay him, but the amount would still be counted in the cap.

[spiffy-dude]

Yes, It's quite feasible that there will be another player or two on 1.5-1.8 M per year.

But the important difference will be that they will probably be taking the field and actually playing, whereas Buddy probably won't be. He'll just be taking up room in the salary cap.

Why the doom and gloom. The club knew exactly what they are doing and I am sure they know exactly well about his misdemeanour's and his 2 strikes that he has. But the club made a decision. Heck we have won 2 flags in under a decade and that hasnt even bolstered our supporter base, so they are banking on the 2nd best player in the AFL.

We can go two ways, keep being that boutique club that has a very slow growth in new supporters and i mean slow in a market that WE now have to share with a club that no one cares OR we can attract a whole heap of new members just like Plugger did which saw the club move on and lay the seeds to our most successful period ever.

I know personally the signing of Lance has reinvigorated my interest for the code as it was dwindling at a fast rate after last season with the bombers and all that. I was ready to leave the code as i was sick of how contrived and how manipulating the whole league had become.

Now i cant wait until round 1 next year.