Recommitted Zach Merrett [UFA 2027] - Wanted a trade to Hawthorn, but it didn't get done

[Lore]

There we go, that's the clip:

 

[bzparkes]

No person is bigger than the.... if you take the emotion out of the situation you negotiate more come 6pm tomorrow night and do this deal 100 times out of 100

They've no obligation to do a trade that actively makes their team worse in the short term and doesn't have any significant impact long term.

Merrett can get shitty about it all he wants but he agreed to the longer contract, as well as the payrise at the start of the year.

I understand that it's be frustrating never playing in a successful side but he should've thought about that before he signed his last contract.

 

[Yoda_]

Your club is going the right way to get players that Petroro manages!

holding them to the contract Tom gets them?

makes sense. Tom finds himself on the outer of the industry inside 5 years if he continues on this path

 

[yeahmate]

yep, the media didn't care about an out of contract, injured, interstate (co) 'captain'.

A contracted, multiple AA, club champion of a big 6 Melbourne club whom every one seems to hate was always going to be jumped on.

the only negative was how low Morris and Petroro tried to stoop to strong arm Essendon into dealing

the media did care though when mitchell met allen. was a huge load of shit written. didnt care though when fagan did the same thing.

 

[GinniAndTonic]

There seems to be this narrative that Hawthorn's offer was the best offer anybody has offered to a 30 year old. I don't know whether this is true, but even if it is, it's such a flawed selective narrative.

• Merrett has openly said he wants to play until he is 36.
• He is more of an outside mid and doesn't get as banged up.
• He is never injured and extremely durable.
• He has just won his 6th best and fairest showing no signs of slowing down.
• he is the captain
• he is contracted.

Make no mistake, if Merrett ends up at Hawthorn tomorrow, he will play 100 games there without shadow of a doubt.

Their offer was just idiotic. The phrase "two-first round picks" has been thrown around a little too liberally also. Pick 1 is a first round pick this year, as will be pick 22. Hawthorn need to find two mid-range first round picks, and a best 22 player (not an A-Grader, but someone 11th to 23rd). The reason the player is important is because there is an inherant risk with any draft pick that is not the same as the known quantity of a player. That unknown risk of getting draft picks needs to be compensated with a known quantity.

I agree with everything you said.

But on the flip side if it wasn’t your club involved would you see our offer as more than fair.

 

[Hawks_Footy]

They've no obligation to do a trade that actively makes their team worse in the short term and doesn't have any significant impact long term.

Merrett can get shitty about it all he wants but he agreed to the longer contract, as well as the payrise at the start of the year.

I understand that it's be frustrating never playing in a successful side but he should've thought about that before he signed his last contract.

Doesn't have any significant impact long term.. that's a pretty big call given the draft picks on the table

 

[Leather Poisoning]

yep, the media didn't care about an out of contract, injured, interstate (co) 'captain'.

A contracted, multiple AA, club champion of a big 6 Melbourne club whom every one seems to hate was always going to be jumped on.

the only negative was how low Morris and Petroro tried to stoop to strong arm Essendon into dealing

Yes they did when Hawthorn met with Allen, just not when Fagan did. They went a bit crazy over it for a couple of weeks there. You may not have noticed because Essendon wasn't involved.

 

[Dan26]

So in this scenario the Bombers wouldn't be getting pick 9?

Pick 9 becomes 13, but I would class that as mid-range. Just. But they'd need to find another mid-range one.

 

[RCAB]

that certainly is the narrative i think you believe is true.

Just like I believed…

…Essendon were stonewalling.

…they weren’t taking calls.

…Hawthorn wouldn’t lowball.

…Merrett's value would drop if Essendon play silly games? How much is he worth now?

Funny how my belief keeps lining up with reality.

Or please tell me how pick 3 is with more than 9, 18, 25 and 37.

 

[rdhopkins2]

I feel sad for Merrett if the deal doesn’t get done. Last chance for finals and a flag.

It’s a gamble for the Hawks to take him given his ages and might only have 2-3 years left in him.

TAS incoming soon and Bombers really need to get in contention fast because the draft will only become thinner once Tassie join the competition.

If we don’t get Merrett it’s not the end of the world for the Hawks.

Let’s see what tomorrow brings!

 

[Dan26]

I agree with everything you said.

But on the flip side if it wasn’t your club involved would you see our offer as more than fair.

I like to think I'm pretty objective. I admit though we all have a bias even if we don't know it. If the shoe was on the other foot, I don't how I'd react.

 

[GinniAndTonic]

I like to think I'm pretty objective. I admit though we all have a bias even if we don't know it. If the shoe was on the other foot, I don't how I'd react.

Yeah fair, you are by far the most reasonable Essendon supporter on here!

 

[WalshistheGOAT]

Who cares! You act like your club doesn’t miss on targets I guarantee you there’s been heaps you’ve missed on.

Irrelevant. Carlton may not land some of our targets but we certainly don't have any teams refusing to pick up our phone calls because we've royally screwed them before negotiations even began.

 

[bzparkes]

Can you name 3 players in any clubs' best 22 who you think would want to go to Essendon?

Its a demand which simply no club could meet. Because no good players want to go there, unless they get given a Silvagni type offer from their dad.

Im sure even getting HH to agree to a trade to Essendon took a lot of effort, and would be because no other clubs offered any interest in him.

It doesn't matter. If you're trying to pry a captain from a club you need to satisfy that club in a trade.

Hawthorn should've considered this before making a play. If they didn't, they've cocked this up massively.

 

[Yoda_]

the media did care though when mitchell met allen. was a huge load of shit written. didnt care though when fagan did the same thing.

maybe, not to the extent of the Mitchell / Merrett dinner. We are two long term rivals, of course it was going to be toxic.

 

[bzparkes]

Conveniently leaving out your club was also keen for Oscar to leave for FA compo but here lol

Sure they were but having it leaked that you're meeting an opposition coach when you're captain and have just being belted in a derby is dumb.

You've gone a day early here mate. Merrett will be a hawk. I'll check back in with our strike rate under Sam 7.35pm tomorrow.

So McKenzie will be convinced to move after all?

 

[GinniAndTonic]

How can you be so blinded by love for the club that Mitchell's dumb tactics don't stick out to you as an inherently stupid thing to have done?

For 1 who cares if a coach is meeting other players happens 100’s of times in a year.

2 we weren’t the ones who leaked it!

 

[Jeremias]

I feel sad for Merrett if the deal doesn’t get done. Last chance for finals and a flag.

He's out of contract at the end of the 2027 season.

If he doesn't move tomorrow, he may have the chance to do so at the end of next season. And he certainly will have the chance the year after, if he doesn't opt to re-sign prior.

 

[RAPPA]

Hold firm Dons.

 

[yeahmate]

3. merrett and his manager approach hawthorn

 

[kaiserchief13]

They add in another top pick though, in a better draft.

Understand they may the ones that would push back in this scenario.

No way Essendon or Hawthorn would be upset at this result

Is pick 4 in this draft a better player than combined of pick 9 of this draft and say pick 14 in 2026 draft?

 

[Dan26]

These are Hawthorn's best 26 players this year in order from 1-26 according to Champion data. That's Champion Datas player rating in bold (Bont is number one in the comp at about 18 points if anyone is curious)

Ginnivan was their 10th best player, so everyone under him down to 22 should be in the discussion. I'm not an idiot. I know they're not giving up Newcombe etc, nor should they.

Most of the players under Ginnivan are too old (27 plus). That's why Mackenzies name keeps coming up. He is ranked Hawthorn's 22nd best player this year, but is 21 years old, and is the only player outside Hawthorn's top-10 that Essendon would want, given that he is a midfielder with an upside.

Mackenzie simply has to be in the conversation. If not him, who? Mackenzie and two MID-RANGE first round picks probably gets it done, given Merrett will probably play 100 games for Hawthorn. Merrett is the most durable player i've ever see at Essendon.

 

[Guardian Hawk]

yep, the media didn't care about an out of contract, injured, interstate (co) 'captain'.

A contracted, multiple AA, club champion of a big 6 Melbourne club whom every one seems to hate was always going to be jumped on.

the only negative was how low Morris and Petroro tried to stoop to strong arm Essendon into dealing

But that's the point. Mitchell meeting with Allen caused a huge media shitstorm. This is being used to highlight that Mitchell is the common denominator and therefore the cause of the leaks and the shitstorms.

But Fagan also met with Allen. There was no outrage. Mitchell is not liked by fans and considered 'slimy', (as per last page), etc. Anything involving Mitchell attracts media attention and evokes emotive reactions, especially for Essendon fans. Other clubs do the exact same thing and no one really cares (Fagan is Mr nice guy so no one has an issue). Now Mitchell is being blamed for all the reactions and fallout at the Bombers in relation to Merrett as though he can control any of that. Even the idea it was so they could get cheaper deal doesn't make much sense- when the exact opposite has happened in all the other examples and Hawthorn have led with very generous offers.

 

[WalshistheGOAT]

For 1 who cares if a coach is meeting other players happens 100’s of times in a year.

2 we weren’t the ones who leaked it!

Oscar Allen meeting with Mitchell - Leaked
Harley Reid meeting with Mitchell - Leaked
Zach Merrett meeting with Mitchell - Leaked

I'm seeing a trend here...

 

[dixyland]

Irrelevant. Carlton may not land some of our targets but we certainly don't have any teams refusing to pick up our phone calls because we've royally screwed them before negotiations even began.

Hawthorn came to the table with a strong offer, but the Essendon board are too busy tripping over their own egos to answer the phone. Unprofessional doesn’t even begin to cover it. No wonder Zac Merrett wants out - who wouldn’t want to escape that rabble?

 

[Sonny Hayes]

Sure they were but having it leaked that you're meeting an opposition coach when you're captain and have just being belted in a derby is dumb.



So McKenzie will be convinced to move after all?

Only if you are incredibly immature like the majority of the AFL landscape.

I genuinely could not scare less if Sicily would have met with oppo coaches mid week when he was a free agent, anyone with a brain knows they will be looking at offers and they should be.