Grant Birchall returns after 2 years out...

tige19

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Will announce his retirement a bit before the mid year trade

I am hearing an announcement is in the works but hasnt been formalised... Just been a complete and utter waste of salary and list spot, he should have retired last year and freed up space and a list spot for the club to use. We could have re-hired him in a development role.
 
I am hearing an announcement is in the works but hasnt been formalised... Just been a complete and utter waste of salary and list spot, he should have retired last year and freed up space and a list spot for the club to use. We could have re-hired him in a development role.
He didnt get a new contract alewady had a contract so this complete waste of salary that u keep sprouting doesnt make any sense
 
Terrible way for a player of his calibre, and service to finish up. Terrible for any player to succumb to injury, but one of our greats?

Always thought out of the 08 guys, he would be the one to cruise to 300.

Still hoping it's not true, but it's been a wonderful, wonderful career Birch. Immensely proud of, and thankful for your efforts.
 
Mar 23, 2007
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I am hearing an announcement is in the works but hasnt been formalised... Just been a complete and utter waste of salary and list spot, he should have retired last year and freed up space and a list spot for the club to use. We could have re-hired him in a development role.

Really average post.

He was contracted. It's not like the guy had been injured for years and the clubs said, hey, let's extend his contract by a few years.

He didn't wish for this, neither did the club.

Has been a warrior for the club. Be more pissed with whoever suggested we use a very good pick on Kieran Lovell.
 
I know this.. he should have retired last year
Says you. Not the club.

He did the injury in service of his contract, did all the rehab in service of his contract, and did it in full faith of resuming on the playing field.

He was entitled to try to resume playing, and obviously believed he could, and, much more importantly, the club wanted it, and obviously believed it was possible.
 
Feb 9, 2012
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Says you. Not the club.

He did the injury in service of his contract, did all the rehab in service of his contract, and did it in full faith of resuming on the playing field.

He was entitled to try to resume playing, and obviously believed he could, and, much more importantly, the club wanted it, and obviously believed it was possible.
I want to like this more than once. Thanks for saying it as it is.
 
Nov 13, 2018
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If Birchall does retire, I am glad we gave him the extra year of time and salary to try to get back out there.

Not one bit of regret; and talk of wasting a spot or salary cap is utterly selfish nonsense, especially when you consider that he has more than likely left money on the table to keep the playing list together through the successful years.

Grant Birchall has been a champion of the HFC.
Sending him off with anything less than gratitude reflects poorly on your character IMO.
 
Birchall was close to the most durable player at the club between 2007-2015. After looking like being a 300 gamer earlier in his career that one injury he sustained back in 2016 has now probably ruined his career. :(
 
Aug 31, 2008
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One of the most underrated and best half backs to play the game in a long time. He was a picture of consistency throughout the course of his career, essentially from game one.

He was really important to how we set up and especially how we transitioned from defense, and how we retained the ball.

We could really use him right about now.
 
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May 16, 2007
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He didnt get a new contract alewady had a contract so this complete waste of salary that u keep sprouting doesnt make any sense

Was it good list management though to offer a 29 year old a 3 year contract. As the Birchall situation demonstrates clearly not and it is decisions like this type that have contributed to the club having depth issues.
 
Was it good list management though to offer a 29 year old a 3 year contract. As the Birchall situation demonstrates clearly not and it is decisions like this type that have contributed to the club having depth issues.
Its the decisions like this? I don't really get riled up mate but that was just such a s**t post. I wasn't even going to respond but i must. Birch was 28 and was playing great football. So do you reckon we don't give gunston a 3 year now that he turns 28 soon? Really
 
May 16, 2007
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Its the decisions like this? I don't really get riled up mate but that was just such a **** post. I wasn't even going to respond but i must. Birch was 28 and was playing great football. So do you reckon we don't give gunston a 3 year now that he turns 28 soon? Really

There have been substantially bigger names than Birchall that have been retained on one year deals as they approach the 30 year old mark.
 
When he did join skills training which was a few times over the last year ramping up to play his field kicking was something else rockets to the forwards on the chest. If only. He would have made a huge difference with his experience cool head and exquisite skills
 
There have been substantially bigger names than Birchall that have been retained on one year deals as they approach the 30 year old mark.
Ok there is no talking to you and i am just fricken going to get angry and i can't be bothered
 

hk89

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Was it good list management though to offer a 29 year old a 3 year contract. As the Birchall situation demonstrates clearly not and it is decisions like this type that have contributed to the club having depth issues.

Sounds like he was 28 not 29. He'd also played 20+ games in 6 of the 7 previous years to the contract being given, with the only one less than that being 17 , and the last 3 being 24, 22 and 25 game seasons. 17 being the lowest since his debut year when he played 16. Was exactly the type of resilient player you'd consider giving a 3 year contract to.

Could you join the dots on how this type of decision is the reason we have depth issues? He had a long term injury, and has been trying to get back on the park pretty much the entire time. As late as last month he was hoping he wouldn't be too far away. Say we'd given him a 1 year contract, which would have led him to be out of contract at the end of 2017. Do you really think we'd tell him to piss off at the end of 2017 because he was injured? Just like anyone with a long term injury that we thought would come back, we'd have given him another year at that point. It is possible that at the end of 2018 we might have decided to pull the plug, but the club clearly thought he was still capable of coming back at that point, so it is in fact possible we'd have given him another year anyway, ending up with the same 3 years.

Now say we'd axed him at the end of 2017 after giving him a hypothetical 1 year contract (which would have had a bunch of fans out with pitchforks, but lets ignore that). What do we do with his list spot? He's already not playing so he's already made way for someone, so it isn't about seniors development. Maybe we can bring in another kid with a late pick and see how they go in the VFL. Chances are that pick never actually plays anyway, and the long shot of a late pick coming off vs the very real chance (according to our medical team) that Birchall could return seems like a no-brainer in favour of Birchall.

I reckon if we had delisted him, you'd be on here saying, "it is decisions like letting players like Birchall go instead of following through with their rehab that has led us to the depth issues we now have".

I find it massively disrespectful of a four time Hawthorn premiership player to imply that he's been deliberately milking some kind of 'pension' from Hawthorn because he didn't retire instead of spending over 2 frustrating years trying to get back on the park, and that we should have axed him a year or two ago when he was doing the best he could to get back.
 
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tige19

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Says you. Not the club.

He did the injury in service of his contract, did all the rehab in service of his contract, and did it in full faith of resuming on the playing field.

He was entitled to try to resume playing, and obviously believed he could, and, much more importantly, the club wanted it, and obviously believed it was possible.

Obviously I was right.
 

tige19

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Really average post.

He was contracted. It's not like the guy had been injured for years and the clubs said, hey, let's extend his contract by a few years.

He didn't wish for this, neither did the club.

Has been a warrior for the club. Be more pissed with whoever suggested we use a very good pick on Kieran Lovell.

You think it’s personal? Birch is a legend of the club, he is a 4 timer and a genuine star and will always have respect and love from supporters.. the club/supporters have given him as much as he has given us, I just don’t subscribe that we should have inherited his salary for a 3rd year, I think he should have retired and been employed in a development role.
 
Of course. In the world of tige, that's just how it is every day.
I sometimes wonder if we're dealing with a 12 year old. I just stopped conversing because it just got so frustrating banging your head against a rubber mallet. It's like a dull thud that makes no real change, but keeps banging anyway.

"I was right" Lol... It turns out of you make 14,000,605 predictions, in one of them a rat walks on the quantum stabiliser.
 
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