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What exactly is James Frawley being paid now, and how does that compare to other defenders and other players in the competition?
AFL supporters deserve an answer.
The AFL has brought in free agency at the request of players, who after years of service want an avenue to search for greater team success, or a greater pay cheque. They modelled it on American leagues, similar to the adoption of the salary cap and draft system.
However, unlike American leagues, free agency fails in one key area: transparency.
In the NBA for example, fans can use websites like basketball-reference.com to look up the payroll of players, which list their salaries, the dates of player contracts and their key terms.
Fans can see how much of the salary cap each player uses and compare that to players of other teams.
Likewise in the NFL, using overthecap.com, fans of the Denver Broncos can see that Peyton Manning is being paid $15 million per year, with a prorated bonus of $2.5 million. They can also see the comparatively more modest salaries of the practice squad and the injury reserve.
No such information exists for AFL supporters. We are told that players are being paid ‘roughly’ a certain amount, but how are we to know how that compares to other players within the team and beyond it?
In April this year, News Limited reported that the average wage of an AFL player will hit $300,000 in 2015. But which players are considered ‘average’?
If Hawthorn has offered James Frawley a contract of ‘around’ $500,000 that is well above average. But is that the going rate for a former All-Australian key defender on the market? Is that the same amount that Richmond is paying their key defender and now All-Australian Alex Rance, or Adelaide’s Daniel Talia? Both are younger than Frawley but have been very impressive this year, while Frawley has struggled to regain his 2010 All Australian form.
More broadly, how does this figure and the average figure compare to the big names of the competition – Gary Ablett Jr, Lance Franklin, Nat Fyfe and Joel Selwood? Much has been made of Buddy’s ‘10 million over 10 years’ contract, but fans do not have concrete information about the front-ending of the contract, which perhaps make it more reasonable.
Supporters deserve this information. Like shareholders in a company, they are the backbone of the club and the AFL. They invest time and money in clubs, spending hundreds each year on memberships alone, not to mention flights and accommodation to watch their team interstate, sponsoring players, attending club functions, and buying merchandise.
They drive the club and ensure its longevity, financial security, and ultimately its success. Perhaps this vague $500,000 figure is appropriate, but fans should be able to make their own assessment, particularly if their team is performing poorly.
If they see the specific amount and think Hawthorn is paying too much for Frawley, in comparison to young premiership players Luke Breust, Bradley Hill and Jack Gunston, they should be able to criticise that decision and hold the club to account. Likewise if Franklin’s salary is triple other all-Australian Swans Nick Malceski and Nick Smith, fans should know how the club weighs their contributions and be able to agree or disagree with it.
It may be uncomfortable to have salaries on public display, but clubs will be held to account over player payments.
At the moment the media and clubs throw around figures, which leave supporters in the wilderness, unable to really assess a player’s worth.
If free agency gives players and clubs greater flexibility in the market, then let’s give fans an insight into the mechanics of that market.
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