St Kilda's Leigh Montagna and Simon Black of the Brisbane Lions contest the ball during the AFL Indigenous Round 09 match between the St Kilda Saints and the Brisbane Lions at the Docklands Stadium. Slattery Images
There’s been a lot of discussion in the AFL world about the idea of a mid-season draft. Alistair Clarkson and Michael Voss have both voiced their willingness for such a concept, and Jason Akermanis wrote a piece supporting the idea in the Herald Sun in June.
The AFL have already acknowledged they are looking into the idea and are considering certain models to make it work, which suggests the concept of a mid-season draft is supported in the footy community.
But, with the AFL Players Association (AFLPA) pushing for free agency by 2012, perhaps what Australian rules needs is not only a mid-season draft, but also a mid-season trading period.
For instance, whereby a mid-season draft allows clubs to sign players from state competitions, a trade period would allow AFL players to move from one AFL club to another in the middle of the year.
And there are many reasons for players and clubs to support such a concept as AFL footy moves into ‘the new world of free agency’.
Starting with players, the perfect example of someone who may enjoy such an idea is St Kilda’s Matt Maguire.
Maguire, selected by the Saints at pick 21 in the 2001 AFL Draft, infamously broke his leg in two places in a horrific incident in late 2006.
Since then Maguire has experienced a number of leg and foot problems which have frustratingly thwarted his attempts to comeback at AFL level.
This year though, the 25-year-old defender has been able to return to fitness and push for a senior run with St Kilda. But with the Saints’ 2009 success, Maguire hasn’t been able to break into the 22.
Considering the limited career span for AFL footballers, it would be naïve to think someone like Maguire, despite his good nature, wouldn’t be irritated and frustrated by the situation.
But a mid-season trade period would allow someone like Maguire, who has spent the last three years battling injuries, to seek a new opportunity elsewhere while he can, especially considering several clubs are reportedly interested in his services should he be available at the end of the season.
And a move may not be Maguire’s only interest in the introduction of a potential trade period. A trade period would also place pressure on clubs to keep their players happy and keep morale up, otherwise risk players leaving. A good way for clubs to address that, is to give players a chance in the seniors.
But this argument isn’t based purely on Matt Maguire. There are other good cases such as Richmond pair Mark Coughlan and Nathan Brown who’ve spent years on the sidelines battling injuries, while there’s been others in years gone by from top teams such as ex-Geelong pair Tim Callan and Brent Prismall who are both at new clubs nowadays.
Coughlan though, in particular, has battled knee, groin and hamstring injuries for years but finally in 2009 has found fitness only for new Richmond caretaker coach Jade Rawlings to claim he is surplus to requirements.
It seems unfair, that one man’s opinion means the 27-year-old Richmond midfielder’s career is on hold yet again.
Indeed, under the current rules, AFL players are ridiculously disempowered as employers and a mid-season trade period may restore, or develop, some room for players (and agents) to bargain.
But all the points above are in the interests of the players and something the AFLPA might pursue, so it may seem difficult to fathom why the clubs might want this concept.
But after the recent claim by AFLPA chief executive Brendon Gale that ‘free agency is inevitable’ and with the admission by the AFL that they were working on a model for free agency which could be implemented by 2012, the clubs need to prepare for change.
And the idea of a mid-season trade period is a change which would benefit clubs in the world of free agency.
Essentially, what free agency means is players are not bound to any club once their contract with a team expires, therefore allowing them to dictate their own futures and potentially leave a club without compensation.
But with the introduction of a mid-season trade period, clubs may be able to avoid losing players without compensation.
By that I mean, currently AFL players are signed to contracts on a yearly basis whereby the deal expires after a regular season. With free agency these players would be able to leave a club when their contract is up at the end of a season without compensation in the form of trades or draft picks.
But with a mid-season trade period, players would typically be under contract in the middle of the season. Therefore clubs could put players on the market whilst they are contracted in order to receive compensation for a player before they become a ‘free agent’ at the season’s end.
Indeed, there would need to be some work done on how to determine compensation in the shape of draft picks, as the specific selections wouldn’t be allocated at that stage, but clubs could potentially trade for players, a certain round-pick (ie. 2nd round pick or 3th round pick) or even money which may interest some of the less financially-secure clubs.
There would also need to be some adjustments made to the salary cap for the second-half of a season, but that is inevitable with a mid-season draft anyway.
Nevertheless, it seems free agency is going to arrive in the AFL, despite past resistance, and preparations need to be made.
Richmond veteran Matthew Richardson recently said on FM radio station Vega, “I think that free agency should come in, definitely.
“People say they’re worried that all the big stars would leave clubs and move clubs, but over the history of the game not a lot of the real big names have actually moved clubs.
“Most players would like to be one-club players, but there is going to be circumstances where free agency would be very, very good, so I’d support it.”
Indeed, Richardson is right. While free agency is about giving AFL players some power in their occupation, the modern Australian rules culture exists whereby leaving a club is frowned upon as disloyal and players probably won’t jump from club-to-club with its immediate introduction.
But what ideas like free agency and mid-season trade periods do, is empower players and in certain circumstances (ie. Maguire, Coughlan, Callan, Prismall) enable them to find new opportunities and further their limited professional careers as a footballer.
The fact of the matter is the players are the AFL’s key asset, so they need to look after them and free agency does that. The clubs need to realize free agency is coming and in doing that, they need to prepare to make changes to enable themselves to cope with its effects.
One of those ideal changes would be a mid-season trade period.
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