AFL chief executive Gillon McLachlan has confirmed salary cap concessions will be scrapped in 2017.
Speaking on Fox Footy’s AFL 360 last night, McLachlan said sides like Greater Western Sydney, who have received concessions since their conception, will now have the “same salary cap as every other team”.
According to the Herald Sun, GWS have an extra $760,000 in their salary cap in 2016 as part of start-up concessions. A further $600,000 is also included as a ‘cost of living allowance’.
These extra provisions in the salary cap, as well as their fortuitous academy zoning, have undoubtedly allowed GWS to become so successful in such a short amount of time. After all, the Giants have only been in the competition for five years and yet they are on their way to a potential grand final berth.
But groups of external AFL supporters view the Giants unfavourably. Many believe the side has been gifted the chance of a possible premiership.
But while the support might not be there, McLachlan believes hard work and strategic list management is the real reason for the Giant’s success.
“There is extraordinary talent on that list that some teams can never execute to get,” McLachlan said. “But on the flip side, I think a lot of credit needs to go to people at the club who have used the system incredibly well. They’ve drafted well, they’ve traded well.”
Their aggressiveness and ‘team mentality’ was also highlighted.
“I look at them and to the success in development, but I look at them and the hunger they have before a game and they’ve developed a culture beyond the talent,” McLachlan said. “They’re an aggressive, tight group and that’s more than talent.”
But those terms can be applied just as easily to their opposition. And unlike GWS, this side has not been given their opportunity on a silver platter.
The Western Bulldogs are the darlings of the AFL. In 2016, they continued to overcome adversity. They battled through a ridiculous amount of injuries over the course of the season to finish seventh.
They have then gone on to defy history in their two consecutive finals wins. An away win in Perth was unprecedented. A solid win against the three-time reigning premiers Hawthorn was even more so.
Everybody loves a good underdog. The Dogs fit the build in more ways than one.
Their one and only premiership was all the way back in 1954. They have also lost their last seven preliminary finals, dating back to 1984.
Western Bulldogs supporters, players and administrators have been through a tough six decades of longing and despair. GWS haven’t even been in the league for six years.
The determination and passion of the Dogs is exciting. But it’s possible that this will only materialise no further than mere hope. After all, the home venue, a week’s rest, and pure talent means there’s a very strong chance that GWS will win.
In a league striving for equality across the board, that certainly won’t be a good look. One of the older teams being run over by the youngest members of the league does not signal a fair competition.
So yes, it’s great that there will finally be an ‘even’ playing field come 2017 when salary cap concessions are scrapped.
But GWS’ rise and dominance this year is proof enough that the changes are too little, too late.
Bill
Guest
I think Sheedy was a better judge of a kids potential
Bill
Guest
Yes the Storm bought over 5 or 6 NZ rugby union players a year to try out and most didn't make it but they were the lower paid rookies - getting good players from NSW and Qld cost a packet
peterhoz
Guest
So GWS have success, and this proves that concessions are responsible. Yet Gold Coast got the same concessions. Me thinks your so-called "proof" is nothing more than circumstantial evidence. Remember the age old saying: A champion team will always beat a team of champions!
Bruce
Guest
Michael The GWS and Suns were granted concessions, the Swans rebuild at the turn of the century under a salary cap,trades and draft were where they developed players Barry, LRT, Keneally and they lost a few players after 2005 GF win (Schneider,Dempsey, Ball)
Bruce
Guest
Agent Wrong - The Storm (owned by the half owner of the competition) was created from the best remnants of 3 Super League clubs that folded plus Lazarus and won their second year (before Bellamy). Imagine if that happened in the AFL? " "all their stars came to the club as low paid rookies Wrong Inglis and Folau 2 schoolboy superstars for example were lured to Melbourne by money (Tim Sheens said he couldn't compete with the money the Storm were offering juniors - as if they would leave Brisbane for |Melbourne). Note the salary cap investigation only went back to Waldrons time at the club so he was the handy scapegoat. There were plenty of juniors tried by Storm with seemingly unlimited budget and discarded so eventually they unearthed a couple of good ones but Smith and Cronk and probably Slater showed a bit as juniors - you cant tell me they didn't show something as juniors.
Tara Cosoleto
Roar Pro
Thanks for the nice feedback Bigstu!
Tara Cosoleto
Roar Pro
Thanks for that! A bad typo on my part.
Tara Cosoleto
Roar Pro
Hi Michael RVC. I think that's an issue that really does need to be discussed more- I probably will write about it at some point. But after McLachlan's comments last week, and because of GWS' success, it seemed to be the right time to write a piece on salary cap equality.
Mister Football
Roar Guru
One small correction, the dogs didn't make the finals in 1984, they made and lost the preliminary in 1985.
michael RVC
Roar Pro
Hey Tara, why don't you write an article about fixture equality?
michael RVC
Roar Pro
McLauchlan is no Demetriou. The former is completely focussed on being popular in Victoria, the latter completely focussed on a national comp being developed into a magnificent success.
michael RVC
Roar Pro
Same as GWS and same as Sydney rebuild from end of nineties thru 2004.
michael RVC
Roar Pro
Ian, it seems Cat and others want us to believe that support for AFL is as strong as it is in Vic or WA etc, enough to yield the same 3P sponsorships opportunities/market. How convenient it is for them to believe that. Anyone thinking it thru and being remotely honest would realise how stupid that proposition is.
Agent11
Guest
Except the Storm were not filled up with big stars, all their stars came to the club as low paid rookies and they were nurtured and developed in a great system headed by Craig Bellamy. After making a few grand finals and players being selected for rep games their value exploded and instead of the club releasing one of them they cheated to keep them all. Roy understands the Storm got their success through hard work but in the end they still cheated.
Bigstu
Guest
Great article Tara, I will look out for your next ones too
andyl12
Guest
Well, Sydney's cost of living was always the argument the club to justify keeping the allowance. It's just a shame people kept believing their argument for so long. And anyway, do you know of any teenage footballers who wouldn't want to live in Bondi? In NRL the Roosters have no trouble keeping their players nearby, no matter where they came from.
TomC
Roar Guru
Anecdotal evidence, certainly, but Mal Michael once said that he made more money from private sponsorship as a fringe player at Collingwood than as a triple premiership player at Brisbane, or words to that effect. Anyway, of course it's the case that markets where footy is a bigger deal will have more sponsorship opportunities for footballers. It shouldn't be something that needs a lot of evidence.
TomC
Roar Guru
I think you're both half right - Brisbane's problems have multiple causes, but there surely can't be any doubt that being a Queensland based club without any additional assistance made their problems worse. The only real debate how much impact it has. I think the evidence is that the impact is substantial, and growing alarmingly. Even the list of problems cited by Gene have a geographic component - it's harder to attract the best staff to Queensland, and it's harder to attract quality board members in a state where the code is further down the pecking order. Incidentally there are many who argue that the Lions actually lost their veterans too soon - Voss and Leppitsch retired relatively early; Akermanis, Michael and Power played briefly for other clubs.
TomC
Roar Guru
Sydney's COLA was dramatically increased to coincide with the abolition of the retention allowance. It was always a COLA in name only. The two were clearly linked.
Cat
Roar Guru
Brisbane went into a slide for a number of reasons. Old players kept too long, poor player development of their replacements. Board issues. The list goes on.