Can’t remember? 3 years maybe?
Player Watch Rory Sloane - Retired
- Thread starter I Lost My Keays
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I think Max Michalanney might be that guy.
Reckon max has alot more natural ability than Rory though.
Jake Soligo is the guy
I feel it’s unfortunate how a fair few on here are blinded by a player’s statistical output, that nothing else becomes important. Sloane is the epitome of why a player is more than just his stats for these various reasons:
1. One-club man from an interstate location. It’s likely a testament to his overall talent and his ability to get the most of what his body can achieve, but likely to be a sign of loyalty in part. Speaking of which..
2. His contract extension in 2018 was more than just the sum of numbers between him and the club. Let me paint an ugly picture..we had a camp being talked about ad infinitum by a couple of Vic journalists (not in a good way); meanwhile, we were having players getting hammies, groin awareness, ass tightness etc. it was like a battlefield! Needless to say, 2018 was probably the lowest of lows in the overall mood department for players, coaches and fans alike. It was rumoured that a host of players would be leaving due to a “bad culture”. Going back on topic, Sloane was the guy that helped to produce calm among the calamity, with the contract extension. That had helped to galvanise the team from a wreckage of a year, and it was a statement that says “through thick or thin, I still want to be a part of it”.
3. The amount of injuries he’s sustained over the years is probably a sign of his courage mixed with (plenty of) bad luck. The courage part, is irrefutable and I’ll be impressed if anyone can find a bloke who has bled more for the club than Sloaney, figuratively and literally!
4. His mental strength and willpower to go through a ton of rehab. Honestly, if anyone of you who actually plays sport, you’d know injuries are inevitable. But if I were to go through all the rehab that’s Sloane has gone through, I’d quit much earlier than him. He’s certainly not in the peak of form in the last few years, but how many people can be in peak form with the amount of injuries like Sloane?
Thanks Sloaney for your contributions!
1. One-club man from an interstate location. It’s likely a testament to his overall talent and his ability to get the most of what his body can achieve, but likely to be a sign of loyalty in part. Speaking of which..
2. His contract extension in 2018 was more than just the sum of numbers between him and the club. Let me paint an ugly picture..we had a camp being talked about ad infinitum by a couple of Vic journalists (not in a good way); meanwhile, we were having players getting hammies, groin awareness, ass tightness etc. it was like a battlefield! Needless to say, 2018 was probably the lowest of lows in the overall mood department for players, coaches and fans alike. It was rumoured that a host of players would be leaving due to a “bad culture”. Going back on topic, Sloane was the guy that helped to produce calm among the calamity, with the contract extension. That had helped to galvanise the team from a wreckage of a year, and it was a statement that says “through thick or thin, I still want to be a part of it”.
3. The amount of injuries he’s sustained over the years is probably a sign of his courage mixed with (plenty of) bad luck. The courage part, is irrefutable and I’ll be impressed if anyone can find a bloke who has bled more for the club than Sloaney, figuratively and literally!
4. His mental strength and willpower to go through a ton of rehab. Honestly, if anyone of you who actually plays sport, you’d know injuries are inevitable. But if I were to go through all the rehab that’s Sloane has gone through, I’d quit much earlier than him. He’s certainly not in the peak of form in the last few years, but how many people can be in peak form with the amount of injuries like Sloane?
Thanks Sloaney for your contributions!
jackster83
The leader of the bunch.
Next year the LG should be Dawson, Keays, Max and Jake. Maybe one more (Hinge) but that's it.
ROB, Murphy, Fog and Milera shouldn't be anywhere near it.
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Just USUAL SUSPECTS things
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Little Bro. He was paid a lot of money to be part of the club. We (most of us) pay to be part of the club. Also it isn't a club because we don't have full member voting rights.
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During Sloane’s presser, did anyone pick up on Nick’s little quip about coaching? He journo asked a question about Rory coaching and Nick’s quipped something like “do you think there could be an opening coming up”.
He quickly covered it up but was a bit weird.
He quickly covered it up but was a bit weird.
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He had a great career, no doubt about it. Will look back with plenty of fondness, and the retirement speech was very warm and fuzzy. If it gets us 4pts on Thursday, even better.
It would be cool if he can be a mentor from the bench or something for the rest of the season, definitely can make himself useful for the club and players in that area.
Don't really hold anything against Sloane himself for going around too long, what 34yr old is going to say no to their employer offering them 300k?
It would be cool if he can be a mentor from the bench or something for the rest of the season, definitely can make himself useful for the club and players in that area.
Don't really hold anything against Sloane himself for going around too long, what 34yr old is going to say no to their employer offering them 300k?
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Sad way to go for a player, he was really good for parts of 2016/17 and had some good seasons prior to that. Since then he has bobbed up for some great moments in games, but realistically he was massively overpaid in his previous contract compared to what he delivered and that has been to the detriment of the club's list management. That's not entirely on him though, he is a professional athlete and his first priority is to look after himself.
Hope he gets to stay involved in the game if that is what he wants, would probably benefit from experience in a different club environment though.
Hope he gets to stay involved in the game if that is what he wants, would probably benefit from experience in a different club environment though.
Exactly what I was going to reply with!
Pugsley
TheBrownDog
Soligo definitely with the effort, has less physical barriers to being a top tier player due to his pace and agility.
The closest I can think of is Berry. I like Berry but I can't see him ever reaching Sloane status.
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Some years ago now I posted somewhere on your board that Rory was one of those players anyone would want on their side. Congratulations to him on a great career. Parallels with Travis Boak in that both IMHO overall end up shy of the elite elite but gave everything they had, have been great club men, and seem all round decent human beings too.
Drugs Are Bad Mackay?
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I remember Rendell saying that he wanted to pick Rory late in the previous year's draft. I think it was when you could still take 17 year olds of a certain birth date range
We didn't but when was still there the year after we grabbed him
We lost a lot when Rendell left. Even if a lot of decisions are collaborative and others chip in, it was the partnership that worked
We didn't but when was still there the year after we grabbed him
We lost a lot when Rendell left. Even if a lot of decisions are collaborative and others chip in, it was the partnership that worked
To be fair, Rendell deciding to select Aaron Kite over Rory Sloane doesn't exactly reflect well on him, and even if you buy the "the club wanted a taller player" story, he had previously selected Armstrong, Cook and Jacky over him as well
But hey, nobody else picked him up either that year.My main memory from Sloane being recruited is the story of him playing on one of the high-ranked small forwards of that year (Yarran?), completely blanketing him, and then refusing to let him leave the ground until he shook his hand.
Scorpus
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Certainly a great drafting decision
Taking Shaun McKernan before Sloane (and Dayne Beams and Dan Hannebery and Liam Shiels and Steven Motlop and Mitch Robinson and Michael Walters) in the 2008 draft, not so much
Just quietly, the 2008 draft had a really good strike rate in the 2nd and 3rd rounds, bit of a superdraft in that respect
Drugs Are Bad Mackay?
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To be fair, Rendell deciding to select Aaron Kite over Rory Sloane doesn't exactly reflect well on him, and even if you buy the "the club wanted a taller player" story, he had previously selected Armstrong, Cook and Jacky over him as well
My main memory from Sloane being recruited is the story of him playing on one of the high-ranked small forwards of that year (Yarran?), completely blanketing him, and then refusing to let him leave the ground until he shook his hand.
Beau Dowler Mitch Thorpe Board
With Sloane's retirement that leaves only seven players from the 2008 draft class who are still on AFL lists.
Steele Sidebottom
Liam Jones
Liam Shiels
Rhys Stanley
Michael Walters
Luke Breust
Lachlan Keeffe (who somehow has only 111 games in 14 years)
And, only seven players recruited prior to him as well:
Scott Pendlebury (2005)
Travis Boak (2006)
Todd Goldstein (2006)
Tom Hawkins (2006)
Patrick Dangerfield (2007)
Callan Ward (2007)
Taylor Walker (2007)
Steele Sidebottom
Liam Jones
Liam Shiels
Rhys Stanley
Michael Walters
Luke Breust
Lachlan Keeffe (who somehow has only 111 games in 14 years)
And, only seven players recruited prior to him as well:
Scott Pendlebury (2005)
Travis Boak (2006)
Todd Goldstein (2006)
Tom Hawkins (2006)
Patrick Dangerfield (2007)
Callan Ward (2007)
Taylor Walker (2007)
What's the deal with Liam Jones? It looks like it took nearly a decade for him to get established, but has been a mainstay since.
It goes with the turf. A professional athlete's career can be over suddenly after a serious injury, or just unemployed after a drop in form and is unwanted. It is in their interest to make as much as they can, and preferably as early as they can (especially in a high level contact sport).
Compared to the NFL, I think AFL has done a decent job encouraging players to consider post-career studies and options. There is also the semi-pro level they can fall back into (SANFL, VFL, even local footy) which doesn't exist for NFL players - over there, when it's over, it really is all over. But all that said, it still won't replace the massive void when an AFL career stops.
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