BREAKING: Lance Franklin set to join Sydney Swans

Bold Predictions: 1. GWS are screwed. Again. 2. Buddy will be ineligible for the Brownlow in 2014. You heard it first.

+1.

yewonk, Re Colless, not really, perhaps the Swans are going to need those Academy players. If anything, As I've suggested elsewhere, Colless' comments now actually make some sense (even if he does slightly regret them now).

If the COLA is staying, then the $800,000-$1,000,000 granted to them should be used for the that purpose and that purpose only. If they use it for any other purpose, it should be deemed illegal and the AFL should charge them. It's called the Cost of Living allowance for a reason, it is for cost of living allowances, not poaching players. I believe Sydney are using the COLA because how do they have a lot of room in their cap when they have a multitude of stars on decent pay packets and signed Kurt Tippett for a lot of $$$ last year and they lost nothing to get him (BUT Tippett had a dodgy and if I'm right illegal contract with Adelaide). Nowadays Melbourne is now more expensive to live in than Sydney so that makes the COLA useless now. I'm all for the larger cap for Gold Coast and GWS because they have to start from somewhere and they will eventually come back to the field in due course.

COLA should only apply to draftees and rookies in the first 2 years of their base contract who go to team not in their home state and should apply to all teams. It should be a flat amount of $3000 to $5000. 9.8% ridicules fair play for all and gives Sydney an unfair advantage over all other teams. COLA should be removed effective immediately and the approx. $2,000,000 the AFL pay/subsidise divided equally across all teams and added to their salary caps. Hawthorn have every right to squeal. They are currently the only club who did not get a hand out/advantage from the AFL so therefore are effectively funding the cash for a competitor to take their player.

n the US most have moved to college and very few land ina pro team in their home town and they are 22 and above usually. So the playing field is level and the games are universely popular in all towns. AFL towns provide much greater outlets for revenue enhancements than Syd/Bris...The only similarity is that leBron would prefer to live in Miami than Cleveland.

It began as a clever bit of lobbying by Sydney about 20 years ago. They basic premise was that it was more expensive for a kid to live in Sydney, than to live in Adelaide...meaning net-salary expectation was affecting potential recruitees. It was a crock then, and it's a crock now. If you want to live more cheaply, you move away from Bondi, simple.

Why does Sydney have a higher salary cap than the Melbourne teams at all? Over here, in America, a salary cap is a salary cap. It doesn't matter if your team plays in New York City, Los Angeles, Columbus Ohio or Raliegh, North Carolina.

Yes but there was also the AFL ambassadorial role at GWS that would've pushed his wage up to 2 mil a year so after reading up about him it is more likely the party lifestyle down at the beaches that really affected his decision.

Yes, Jacques ... and just in the nick of time! :)

Sad that I'm still out of the country and won't get to witness this predicted head explosion and its frothing at the mouth public outburst. Eddie going into indignant moron mode is one of life's little pleasures when you don't follow the AFL;)

Ironically Carlton is paying part of Buddy's pay at the Swans via the handouts we give the pack of bludgers.

Funny how people are saying how could they fit all these blokes under the salary cap. What has Hawthorn and Geelong been up to the past 5 years then? That somehow does not get questioned. It is ridiculous how there is a "living allowance" just because you live in Sydney. You don't have to be able to afford a harbour front villa at Vaucluse to survive in Sydney. There is Bankstown and other cheap suburbs that even have paved roads.

Buddy unbelievable! :)

Hawthorne come out of this a winner on all fronts they get the cash and roughhead gets more space in the foward fifty (who is a better player then buddy in my opinion)expect him to go close to the ton next year, and if sydney get living allowance so should brisbane as the cost of living here is just obscene but when your on two million a year plus endorsements its not an issue he was lucky to get picked up by a big club as in a year he would be lucky to get half of what he's signed for and sydney were dumb enough to fork out the dough

I'd do a straight swap of Kennedy for Buddy. Can't understand all the hype about Franklin, Roughie's a better player (and a better bloke).

I think Buddy and his management used the GWS bid to get a better deal at Sydney - he was always going there, it was just about how much.

Precisely mate I couldnt have said it better myself. Its not about stepping on peoples toes and worrying about their feelings its about as you stated winning, 8th may as well be last.

the draft keeps the weaker clubs stronger than they would other wise be and gives them a chance to improve and the cap stops a epl style arms race but it doesn't even up the competition. All the big teams have been able to buy who they like when they have needed to and keep their ladder positions barring injuries. The Swans have just been smarter this time round. I still think most of the outrage is that he has been able to go to a leading club while still getting what he demanded. the Swans big advantage is that they are not heavily scrutinized by the media and constantly slip under the radar when these deals are been arranged. The American style of the deal displays a difference in thinking that seems to have developed in isolation from the Melbourne centric herd.(also Perth and Adelaide for that matter) Sydney will have to give up for forgo talent in the future because of this deal, they must be banking their ability of their youth to carry their midfield for the next few years at a cheaper rate.

The problem here is the amount of money they can throw at him over 9!!!!! years. All because of the COLA, which is now a travesty. The 9 year contract was to keep Hawthorn out of putting in a matching bid. Hawks can't because they don't have that luxury. Its a disgrace.