It must kill Carlton fans to see Eddie Betts carving up for the Crows.
Coming off arguably his best year, his first for the Crows, in which he scored 51 goals and averaged more possessions than any other year, Carlton are tumbling down the ladder with very little scoring power.
When Betts signaled his intention to test the free-agency waters, multiple clubs circled. This should have been a sure sign to Carlton to up their offer to the fan favourite – both monetarily and in length – but unfortunately they didn’t.
And so Eddie crossed to Adelaide, where after only one season fans wear shirts celebrating the ‘Eddie Betts Pocket’ at Adelaide Oval, where he has kicked some brilliant goals.
What was Carlton thinking?
Granted, Betts’ 2013 campaign was quite disappointing, yielding just 27 goals from 18 games, but over the past four years he had averaged 45 goals, chipping in two per game. Not only that, the forward line pressure he offered was, and still is, second to none. Last year, he averaged well over three tackles a game and gave off 29 goal assists. However both of these numbers are lower than some of his figures at Carlton.
Betts had finished second in the Carlton best and fairest of 2012 and had been in the All-Australian squad that year and the year before.
In terms of reputations at Carlton, there weren’t many better than Betts’.
At Adelaide, Betts has been fantastic. On top of goals he’s kicked, the assists he’s dished out and the pressure he’s put on opposition defences, Betts has also helped to look after up-and-coming small forward Charlie Cameron.
Cameron has lived in Betts and wife Anna’s home with their two-year-old son, and their relationship can be seen on the field as they regularly combine in passages of play and celebrate after goals.
Ranked by the AFL’s Player Ratings as the fourth-best small forward, there is no doubting Betts’ playing ability or his stature as a person. The impact he has had and would have on any club leaves me wondering how on earth Carton let him go.
We will probably never know why but, as an Adelaide fan, I would like to say to Carlton: thank you.
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