On Sunday, Dockers’ coach, Ross Lyon, was asked about two of his veteran players, captain Matthew Pavlich, and Luke McPharlin, and talk of their retirement at this season’s end.
“They’ve written their own story for a long time,” he replied, in typical fashion, directly and passionately, “and they’ll continue to do it.”
There are many footballers who would love this response from their coach as they age, just as there are many employees who fear being surplus to requirements as organisations embrace new technologies and a younger workforce. Football was probably the first to embrace ageism.
Footy has always been a ruthless game, where 30 is seen as, if not a use by date, then at a minimum, a best before. But as Ross also mentioned in his post game press conference, “I think the landscape’s changing, how long players play for”, this may not be the case any more.
Clubs are using players smarter now, and training loads are no longer a one size fits all.
I think clubs are also more aware of the value of older players, regardless of a drop in individual output, or where the club may be placed relating to the ‘premiership window’.
This year, we have Dustin Fletcher, Adam Goodes and Brent Harvey, all the ‘wrong’ side of 35, yet still integral to the success of their club.
While a player’s value is ultimately decided by their ability to perform on the field, I feel that increasingly clubs are balancing that with their influence off it. Many within the football industry, the media, the coaches and the fans, focus on a player’s physical capacity to continue, there is one area that I think is drastically underestimated.
I finished playing in 2009, the same year as Michael O’Loughlin, Jared Crouch and Leo Barry. All of these guys had played over 200 games, while Mick played over 300. What amazed me about all three of them was not only their dedication, their mental capacity, or their pure footballing ability, but their ability to stay relevant and popular in an ever changing environment.
These guys all started in the mid-late 90s, and while their careers progressed at different rates, the changes in game style and game plans across their careers were enormous.
The early parts of their careers were still comprised of full forwards that kicked 100 goals a season, midfielders that came off twice a game, and like me in my second game in 2002, youngsters who played 15 minutes of a whole game at the MCG.
By 2009, however, flooding had been invented and largely overcome, Clarkson’s Cluster had won a premiership, rotations were a key discussion in any pre-game meeting, and Geelong were combing for three premierships and over 400 possessions per game.
But more than changes to the game, the personal and personalities that came through our club in the 15 or so years they played changed even more. One of the great challenges for me personally was finding the energy to continue creating meaningful friendships as my older friends left the club.
There were a number of reasons for this, primarily that my motivation for elite football was waning, but I was incredibly envious whenever I looked at the three players mentioned earlier, or other contemporaries such as Amon Buchanan, Craig Bolton, or Brett Kirk, developing strong bonds with the younger players at our club.
As a result of these relationships, these older players were able to stay relevant, influential leaders of our club, but also friends with newer, younger players off it. There is no doubt in my mind that the mentoring provided through these relationships, and the value the younger players felt as a result is still helping the club today.
I feel like Melbourne may have got this wrong in 2010, when James McDonald and Cameron Bruce left the club. The leadership that was lost around this time may have seriously impacted the playing group for a significant time, and it might be a while yet before they fully recover.
There are many challenges in maintaining a career beyond the best before age of 30. Physical wellbeing, remaining mentally fresh, and belonging to a club that values the knowledge and leadership that can only be present in the experienced, are all key elements. But for me, what those outside football clubs will never see, is the way those older players remain important cogs in the sustainability of clubs, in the improvement of young players, and with the ever important challenging of coaches.
But without the ability to adapt to new groups of players that arrive at the doorstep, year after year, these players won’t survive, no matter their ability. Because as a player’s on-field capacity decreases, the only way to ensure survival in a game that values youth and performance above all else, is to also stay relevant off the field.
This is where I failed, but where others have the chance to prolong their careers, and increase the legacy they leave behind.
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