GWS captain Toby Greene has backed those clubs which dug their heels during the AFL’s recent trade period, seeing several contracted players fail to get their desired move.
Bombers skipper Zach Merrett was the most notable wantaway star who missed out on a fresh start, while Jy Simpkin and Rowan Marshall were among several more big names held to their contracts.
Greene believes the security players get when signing a long-term deal is balanced by the power clubs have in the event their guns have a change of heart.
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“As they should, they’ve got the right,” Green said when asked for his thoughts on clubs holding firm amid pressure from players and their agents.
“If you sign a long-term contract, the club gets to decide if they hold you to that. It’s not really up to the players.
“We get security by signing that long-term deal but then the club has the power, so I think they have every right to do it.”
On Merrett, the 32-year-old was asked if he could sympathise with his Essendon counterpart.
“Not sympathy,” he told reporters at the NBA on Prime launch in Sydney on Friday.
“I can understand his reason, the Bombers are probably going through a rebuilding phase and he wants to try and have some immediate success, so I can certainly understand it and can understand why Essendon wanted to keep him.
“It might be awkward day one, but after that he’ll be fine.”
Greene’s GWS teammate Leek Aleer was another player who didn’t get his wish during the trade period, although that was a case of his desired club, St Kilda, pulling the rug from under him having previously courted the key defender.
Aleer ended up re-signing at the Giants on a significantly reduced contract.
“I know how he was feeling, he was a little bit rattled and it certainly came as a surprise and Saints probably did him dirty a bit,” Greene said.
“That’s footy, they had every right to do that, it’s sort of the way footy’s going and player movement.
“It helps us, we get him back and it adds to our team, that’s for sure.”
The Giants pulled off one of the biggest moves of the trade period, landing premiership-winning Melbourne midfielder Clayton Oliver after he was granted permission to look for a new home.
Oliver joined GWS in exchange for a future third-round draft pick, while the Demons will reportedly pay more than half of the 28-year-old’s salary.
“I think he was a little bit disgruntled at Melbourne last year and had a few challenges himself but that’s why we want him, we want to try and get the best out of him and we’ll do everything we can to make sure that happens,” Greene said of Oliver.
“He obviously knows how to play footy and he works bloody hard, so I’m looking forward to getting to work with him and having him at the club.”