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We have heard it all before and perhaps even said it ourselves – the story of the champion player who ‘went around one season too many’.
The story of the club stalwart ‘keeping an up and coming kid out of the side’. The story of the superstar who changes clubs right at the end to get those last few games, be it to prove a point, reach a milestone or just because he felt he ‘still had something to offer’.
With Buddy Franklin’s unprecedented nine-year contract at Sydney taking him through to age 35, the topic has been brought into sharp focus this year. Others have also come under scrutiny – such as Nick Dal Santo, Chris Judd, Jonathan Brown, Daniel Cross and Paul Chapman.
At various times after the 2013 season, each of the above was urged to hang up the boots by various club and media personalities. One, Brown, was talked in to playing on and, after last weekend, probably now regrets it.
Judd chose to play on and it must be said that, right now, the jury is still out deliberating on that decision. The other three have all been very serviceable at their new clubs and, without having been the superstars of old, have at least justified their selection each week.
Then we go to the other end of the scale. A near 40-year-old Dustin Fletcher is in almost career best form, 34-year-old Adam Goodes is showing men a decade younger than he just how this game is played, Brent Harvey continues to ooze shinboner spirit along with class every game and a 30-year-old named Gary Ablett is still head and shoulders the best player in the AFL in the judgement of most scribes and only seems to be getting better as he matures.
Someone once said it isn’t the mileage but the wear and tear that matter. In fairness, for every Dustin Fletcher there are a dozen players whose spirit might still shine but who, even as early as age 30, can no longer make their bodies do what they demand of them. Sadly, there are players far younger than 30 of whom this can be said too.
So, a few questions come to mind.
Whether it is from your own team or from the competition as a whole, do you think we should forget age as a criteria and judge our players purely on capability to fulfil their role.
Or, is age too big a factor – and a risk – for a professional sports club to ignore?
Of the older players, who at your club do you think has passed their used-by date and, just as importantly, who should go on next year – no matter what the calendar might say?
Would you support your team drafting a player over the age of 30 or should they pass up that short term experience in favour of taking on and grooming a rookie?
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