Opinion
Dustin Martin is a future hall of famer, Richmond cult figure and a big game player who has taken the AFL by the scruff of the neck.
Turning just 32 last month, there’s no doubt Dusty has plenty more good footy ahead of him but is it at Richmond?
The resignation of Damien Hardwick at the end of May could be an indication of an end of an era for this wonderful Richmond side.
It looks almost certain that warriors Trent Cotchin and Jack Riewoldt’s careers will come to an end at the end of the season. Would it be in the best interests of the club to part ways and set themselves up well for the future?
Coming into the year the Tigers had the fourth oldest in the AFL with an average age of 24.9 and third most experienced with 81.1 average games across their list.
If you add on the two whopping seven-year deals given to Tim Taranto and Jacob Hopper in exchange for picks 12, 19, 31 and this year’s first-round pick, the Tigers now barely have any young talent coming in and some salary cap pressure.
There’s always been speculation about Dustin Martin leaving throughout his career, but the Giants seem like the perfect fit.
Dusty hasn’t always loved the spotlight barely appearing in press conferences throughout his illustrious career, so the Sydney lifestyle might suit him well for the latter part of his playing days.
Teaming up with old assistant coach Adam Kingsley could be another reason for Dusty to join in which, Kingsley was highly regarded by the Richmond Football Club during his four years at the club.
On paper the Giants list looks strong, stacked with A-grade talent that seems like an endless cycle of replenishment from the draft, with the club’s young talent getting lured back to Victoria every couple of years.
In recent years the Giants have drafted early draft picks such as Tanner Bruhn (pick 12), Jackson Hately (pick 14) and Jye Caldwell (pick 18), but have failed at keeping these youngsters to stay the course.
So is it time to use these picks?
Their defence under Adam Kingsley is rock solid, in the past six weeks the Giants have been the number one team for one-on-one wins. Players like Connor Idun are having career-best seasons alongside teammates Sam Taylor and Nick Haynes gelling well together. Their the number one team for points against, points against turnovers and points against d50.
With the re-signing of Harry Himmelberg for five years Adam Kingsley certainly now has the back six that can be the men to drive them back into contention.
Dustin Martin (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)
In the Giant’s 12 seasons of history, they have played finals in five of those seasons, but they haven’t quite been able to win the big moments. The 2016 preliminary final would definitely be in the minds of many Giants fans when they couldn’t quite find a way, losing agonisingly short by six points.
Dustin Martin is a box office player who has built his reputation on winning the big moments. This explains why the great man has won three Norm Smith medals, a coaches award and a lazy four All-Australians.
Is this the guy the Giants need?
The Giants already have the highest-rated general forward in the competition in Toby Greene. Toby Greene has flourished in his new role as captain, kicking 50 goals already and having Brent Daniels the third-highest-rated general forward as well is a luxury. It would make sense that the second highest-rated general forward would be Dustin himself.
This would allow Toby Greene to receive more time in the midfield and swap frequently between dusty to the goal square. You add Toby Bedford who has been a tremendous pick-up by the club and the forward line doesn’t get much more dangerous than that.
Contracted at the end of 2024 hasn’t stopped the speculation on a potential move that failed previously by the Giants and North Melbourne. Clubs still believe he is gettable, as the Giants could benefit on and off the field with the inclusion.
When Lance Franklin joined the Swans it brought people to the gates, spiking membership numbers significantly. Sydney now has a whopping membership tally of over 60,000 people with SCG numbers skyrocketing over the period of Lance Franklin.
In the first nine rounds of this season, GWS could only obtain an average crowd attendance of 8,930, with Western Sydney losing engagement with AFL. Plans to get Dusty could increase the seats filled at Giants Stadium.
The murmurs are not going away anytime soon as anything can happen at trade period time.
Should Dusty stay a one-club player or go?
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We’re taking a look at one player from each team that needs to make a difference this week, starting with the ANZAC Day games.
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