Autopsy Welcome to Freo Liam Henry – Fremantle’s 3rd 2019 National Draft Pick [Match bid Pick #9]

[anchor man]

whos complaining about players leaving for more money? 90% of people gave kudos to logue for cashing in on a pay day and harbour no ill will towards him, same for acres who most blame the club for lowballing, but its clearly a personal vendetta a few of you have against henry

Low balling... really. Over payment by the Blues I would say.He aint worth the touted $600,000 he got.But good luck that he got that. Same for Griff.
No idea what he got, but must have been well over what he wanted at Freo, and he was guaranteed a game every week at the Roos.So why wouldn't he go.
Same as Darcy Tucker, no place for him at Freo.

 

[footyfix]

Georgiadies is a really interesting one. Still pretty young, WA lad, has talent. Questions marks have to be over his recovery from an ACL and we have had zero luck trading key forwards over the last 25 years. Also, what would the acquisition say psychologically to Josh Treacy and Sam Sturt? Personally, I reckon it's worth taking a punt but you'd really hope it's not another Cam McCarthy, Shane Kerston situation.

Port would be very happy for us to take him.

Anyone who watches Port more than I do know why Mitch ranks so high for clangers, turnovers and frees against for a player with average output?

He's like top 5 or top 10 in the league in those stats for tall fwds practically all the last 3 seasons.

I watch them a lot. If he’s got all those clangers etc. (he does) and he’s got Rozee, Wines, Butters and Boak feeding him the ball what’s he going to be like with our still developing midfield? Not to mention the ACL. No thanks for me.

 

[arsesmart]

Of course there are varying reasons for players to leave.

But why is it so easy to pull players out of here every year? Players you would think would not be flight risks at all.

The key question for me is why isn't it more compelling for them to stay?

Player retention is key for us to maximise our development.

 

[s_wd6]

Of course there are varying reasons for players to leave.

But why is it so easy to pull players out of here every year? Players you would think would not be flight risks at all.

The key question for me is why isn't it more compelling for them to stay?

Player retention is key for us to maximise our development.

Because a) they can get an extra 500k+ guaranteed over the next few years that they wouldn’t get here or b) get to walk straight into a b22 rather than playing WAFL every week.

Bell doesn’t want to pay players a cent more than he thinks they’re worth. Where’s clubs like Melbourne gave Brayshaw an extra year on good money to stop him from coming to us.

 

[MadMac]

dunno if thats a fair claim to make but regardless, players put in a lot of time and effort for the club and are often not shown much loyalty so cant blame them for being selfish and pushing for what they want out of their short career

i

That’s not how it works. It always amuses me how some people think that it should be a two way street. No. No player is bigger than the club, ergo the club is bigger than any player. Their careers may be short but the network they create while on the list will serve them well after they retire from footy. The ones on struggle street are usually gamblers and alcoholics/drug abusers. The launching pad that is an AFL career (even the short potato ones) is grossly underestimated.

As for Henry, I hope people blaming club would finally stfu. Freo owes Henry nothing. He however owes Freo a lot.
Good luck to him and good riddance

 

[gaskin]

Of course there are varying reasons for players to leave.

But why is it so easy to pull players out of here every year? Players you would think would not be flight risks at all.

They are rarely players we desperately want to keep so when another team comes in and offers them more than we are willing to pay them they take the money.

Lachie is arguably the last player we lost we desperately wanted to keep. You could make a case for Cerra but everyone knew there was no chance of him staying in the end.

 

[basashi]

Not necessarily to do with Henry but because other commenters have raised it on this thread: players who seem to really want to leave for another club...

Back in the old days there was often a group of clubs who were very good at offering pay and benefits outside the system. Players were very attracted to those clubs. But at the time not many people really knew the skullduggery to be true. You generally found out some 20 to 30 or more years later, when players would make an admission here or there. Lots of player movements have only ever made sense in hindsight.

So the question is... has it stopped? Or are we just experiencing the usual timing delay in finding out?

Of course it is not OK to point to particular clubs and make allegations without proof. But on the other hand, it is naive to believe that it just stopped at some point for no reason.

Especially when it was an historically continuous and frankly very successful practice.

Not saying it is a factor in this case, I am just trying to address some of the wondering generally.

 

[DockerDerek]

It would say something if they all left for similar reasons


Facts are that they have all left for different reasons whether that be

Pushed out: hogan, acres, arguably tucker
Opportunity: meek
Wanted to go home: cerra
Misso wanted home: Lobb
Cash money: logue
??: Henry

Someone can fill in the blanks if they want but there are so many different reasons

Yes but I think in most of those cases we can put some level of blame on the club for the departures.

Hogan - recruited an unsuitable personality at a high price.
Acres - was significantly undervalued by the club.
Logue - ditto Acres.
Lobb - recruited a mercenary.
Cerra - recruited a flight risk from day one.
Henry - apparently not keen to stay, reason unknown.
Neale - didn’t want to stay, people speculated that he wasn’t happy with club culture.

As for Tucker and Meek - happy to see them go for greater opportunity.

I’m not saying any club is perfect at player retention but that list is too long.

 

[Sweetback]

Wonder if Clarko’s alleged history with Indigenous players would put others off from going to North

 

[ubiquitous226]

Yes but I think in most of those cases we can put some level of blame on the club for the departures.

Hogan - recruited an unsuitable personality at a high price.
Acres - was significantly undervalued by the club.
Logue - ditto Acres.
Lobb - recruited a mercenary.
Cerra - recruited a flight risk from day one.
Henry - apparently not keen to stay, reason unknown.
Neale - didn’t want to stay, people speculated that he wasn’t happy with club culture.

As for Tucker and Meek - happy to see them go for greater opportunity.

I’m not saying any club is perfect at player retention but that list is too long.

That's one way of looking at it, a very black and white way with a lot of benefit of hindsight.

Hogan - recruitment decision is rightfully open to a lot of criticism, suspect it was made on multiple factors with lots of risks, which eventuated
Acres - we may have been guilty of overestimating our list here, and/or taking a longer term list view. O'Driscoll plus Henry with Aish the mainstay in the meantime were probably viewed as the future, O'Driscoll regressed with injury and form, and Henry is now leaving
Logue - can't agree here, and I liked Logue. We may have missed an opportunity to sign him earlier on lower dollars, but the end decision was the right one for Freo
Lobb - fine with this one, Lobb filled a large gap
Cerra - sometimes you have to back yourself, and who knows how much COVID impacted things
Henry - who knows
Neale - seems to be the clearest one that can be linked back to club issues, it also appears we responded

 

[Taylor]

So the question is... has it stopped? Or are we just experiencing the usual timing delay in finding out?

It's more used to retain players these days than to attract them, but if the money not needed to be spent on Dyson Heppell is moved to Liam Henry then it amounts to the same thing.

 

[arsesmart]

Because a) they can get an extra 500k+ guaranteed over the next few years that they wouldn’t get here or b) get to walk straight into a b22 rather than playing WAFL every week.

Bell doesn’t want to pay players a cent more than he thinks they’re worth. Where’s clubs like Melbourne gave Brayshaw an extra year on good money to stop him from coming to us.

You're talking about reasons to leave. We can all list a fair number of those without the assistance of some-a mansplaining. I'm asking about the inherent resistance to that.

We is bleeding players every year that you would think on the surface would be entrenched. Of course we could think it's just the bucks for Brayshaw at Melbourne and maybe it is, but the key is they kept him. They ain't no basketcase.

The message from these yearly "inexplicable" exits, is Bell and co need to get more resourceful at player retention in a serious way and fast.

 

[Taylor]

The spirit of Brad Hill lingering at Freo luring the young players to the fun night life of Melbourne.

 

[arsesmart]

The spirit of Brad Hill lingering at Freo luring the young players to the fun night life of Melbourne.

Maybe we need to develop the role and then hire a Player Recreational Experience Officer/Purser to enhance the different lifestyle wants of players and their partners (even find them some if needs be).

 

[MadMac]

Maybe we need to develop the role and then hire a Player Recreational Experience Officer/Purser to enhance the different lifestyle wants of players and their partners (even find them some if needs be).

Find them partners? Goodness gracious…

 

[arsesmart]

Find them partners? Goodness gracious…

Lifestyle wants judgey.

 

[greatgatsby]

I know people in Perth mock the whole bright lights thing, but it's not astonishing, other important things being equal, that young men might wish to try something other than Western Australia. I know your former premier treated the rest of Australia like it was some sort of dump but I don't think that's a view widely shared by younger people in particular.

 

[Taylor]

Playing football in Melbourne is better if you enjoy getting out on the town, maybe flying somewhere once a month instead of every week needing to plan your social life around a five hour window for travel that you could instead be having a blast at the club.

 

[greatgatsby]

Yeah, there's no doubt the regular long travel would be a drag. Has shortened plenty of political careers as well.

 

[anchor man]

Yes but I think in most of those cases we can put some level of blame on the club for the departures.

Hogan - recruited an unsuitable personality at a high price.
Acres - was significantly undervalued by the club.
Logue - ditto Acres.
Lobb - recruited a mercenary.
Cerra - recruited a flight risk from day one.
Henry - apparently not keen to stay, reason unknown.
Neale - didn’t want to stay, people speculated that he wasn’t happy with club culture.

As for Tucker and Meek - happy to see them go for greater opportunity.

I’m not saying any club is perfect at player retention but that list is too long.

Agree re Hogan, not a good fit. A half way house is not where we need to be.
Acres,Under valued !!! , over valued by the Blues.$600,000.WOW why would Freo pay that?
Griff good luck to him. The club wanted him to saty. But were not prepared to pay him what his manager was asking. His place was never going to be permanent. A part time senior player.
Lobb Agree . A bad fit. Self interest.
Cerra, could havev been a cog we needed, but was never settled even with the likes of Brayshaw,Serong and DArcy trying to convince him to stay.A gamble.
Henry we will leave that until the decision is made.
Neale was a self person. He wasn't happy playing second fiddle to Fyfe. Didn't even want to play in the same orchestra with the best player, at that time in the competition. See Lobb.
Agree re Tucker and Meek. There was never a spot for Meek once we recruited Jackson. Tucker, I believe the club looked out for him to get the best deal for him. Good luck to them both.

 

[arsesmart]

Yeah, there's no doubt the regular long travel would be a drag. Has shortened plenty of political careers as well.

 

[Joao]

I'm not sure the reason matters as long as its not something the club did.

Good riddance and move on.

 

[arsesmart]

I'm not sure the reason matters as long as its not something the club did.

Good riddance and move on.

The key to the question on whether there is or isn't a pattern with these sorts of hard to fathom player losses directly addresses there being something the club did or (perhaps more likely) didn't do.

 

[Taylor]

Fremantle didn't offer Lobb a contract on good money until his mid thirties.
Fremantle didn't guarentee Acres money, instead basing it on his output which until that contract year wasn't going to pay him a lot.
Fremantle didn't offer Logue $800,000
Fremantle didn't offer Brad Hill $900,000 a year when his front loaded part of his deal expired and he was coming into lesser paying years.

Colin Young has done great work for these four clients particularly. All of them are far better financially.

Meek leaving for opportunity is entirely reasonable when a player like Luke Jackson

9

Luke Jackson

Age

22

Ht

199cm

Wt

102kg

Pos.

F/R

Career

Season

Last 5

D

8.3

2star

K

3.3

1star

HB

5.0

4star

M

1.5

2star

T

1.0

3star

G

0.3

3star

D

8.3

2star

K

3.3

1star

HB

5.0

3star

M

1.5

2star

T

1.0

2star

G

0.3

3star

D

8.3

3star

K

3.3

2star

HB

5.0

4star

M

1.5

2star

T

1.0

3star

G

0.3

3star

is coming into the side.
Tucker left to be with his partner who had moved back to Melbourne after he signed his two year extension to remain here. Total professional.

 

[theGav56]

Why would players show loyalty to the clubs when the clubs can:

• Delist you if they think you're not up to scratch.
• Tell you they want to trade you if it suits their needs.
• Get someone else in who they believe is better in your position. (See Will Brodie).

People have to remember that this is a business. If you were offered a better deal in your workplace, you'd go for it.

Yeah they only have to look at Acres and Logue to realise the club makes business decisions, as it should.