The Enemies At The Gates!

As the 2010 season slowly creeps closer and closer I am reminded that this year is the last year we will see AFL under its current format. From next year the AFL will begin it’s journey to include two more teams into the fold at the Gold Coast and West Sydney. The Cats have been the most successful club of the last 3 years beyond doubt and 2009 proved that on the footy field teams are closing on us. This is to be expected as the game ever evolves and with draft and salary cap restrictions teams are lucky to stay on top for long periods these days.

Geelong has achieved this because it’s star players have placed Premiership and Team glory above salary considerations. No one is disputing that many of our stars could get bigger monetary rewards at other clubs. But being paid more doesn’t always mean that the club you go to will be able to provide you with the on field success you also desire. That is the consideration the players have to make when faced with tempting big contracts from other clubs.

But along come 2 new clubs with salary caps that will enable them to spend up on star players and just maybe get success at the same time. This is the AFLs goal after all, they want the new clubs to be successful sooner rather than later because this will help them establish themselves in their respective markets and localities. Fighting the northerners local code and passion for Rugby is going to be a huge battle and having a struggling club represent the AFL is the last thing they want.

So while we all bask in the glory of an amazing 3 years we are now faced with the fight on 2 fronts. The first front is of course on the field. The pressure is off us in regards to having to win a Premiership to make it all worthwhile, but this doesn’t mean that other teams will lay off us. Many will still view us as the team to beat and as we have often seen in the last few years even the bottom clubs always have a crack at us just to see where they are at. This means that recently we don’t get many easy games. Other teams often play us with a “we have nothing to lose” attitude and the top teams will want to beat us as they would view that as giving them credibility as Finals contenders during the home and away season.

The second and “Northern Front” is an entirely different bunch of raiders. Two new teams with a salary cap that can offer our stars millions of dollars threaten to rip our side apart in a different way. We know Gary Ablett has already heard the deal from the Gold Coast and is mulling it over as we speak. The Gold Coast have Ken Hinkley and brother Nathan there to help lure the Brownlow Medalist north. I don’t blame Gary for listening to the offer, he would have been silly not to, but I sure hope he stays put.

We now hear Sheeds saying he would love Selwood and Rooke at GWS and with ex-captain Tom Harley involved it might seem an alluring prospect to these 2 hard nuts. Other Geelong players could also be approached in the next 2 years to consider a move up north.

The big fish at the moment are Ablett and Selwood. As we know their respective contracts are up at the end of 2010. Geelongs salary cap is bulging at the seams at present and there is no way the club could pay either player what the market says they are worth. If we lost one then the other could be offered a superior deal to keep them. But what if we lost both? What if GWS offers Selwood a million dollar contract? This is scary territory really. By the end of next year we might see some retirements from players like Milburn, Mooney, Scarlett (unlikely), and Ottens. This would make some room in the cap no doubt. But will it be enough.

The other thing is do we trade off a couple of players next year in order to keep Ablett and Selwood in the squad and if so who is expendable? Would you trade a Joel Corey or Corey Enright? What about Brownlow Medalist Jimmy Bartel? Look don’t get mad at me because I am talking like this but this is the reality the club faces. Balmey must be having nightmares thinking about this stuff. All this because of the arrival of 2 new clubs with big player budgets.

In a perfect world one would hope that no one leaves the club. That playing for the team and passion for the club is its own reward. But this is not a perfect world is it and these men have only a short window of their lives playing elite football so who would blame them if they seized an opportunity to sure up their future life. Making hay while the sunshine’s as the old saying goes. They have already tasted great success and so maybe the chance to make some serious change will be too good to pass up. Shane Mumford went to Sydney for that reason.

So enjoy 2010 while you can. It may be the last season we see all of our current players in the hoops. Spare a thought for Balmey, Cook, & Hocking as they try to sort through this situation to try and keep a top notch squad together. The danger is we are raided and decimated, falling down the ladder again and taking years to come back. The hope is that we can at least keep a structure that will keep us successful even if we lose someone like Ablett or Selwood.