Rumour GFC 2026 Player Trading, Drafting FA, Rumours and Wish lists Pt 1

[CatToTheFuture]

No I mean GC Bailey Humphrey

Nah he was gone and never getting to our pick.

Our choices really were Clark, Phillipou, or Ginbey.

Hollands and Weddle were later in the round but weren't considered as high a prospect at the time. Crystal ball to have taken those guys as well as Jones and Gruzewski who were even later. It really was a dud draft

 

[geelong_crazy26]

No I mean GC Bailey Humphrey

No, he got taken before our first pick

 

[Kobe Gryant]

Nah he was gone and never getting to our pick.

Our choices really were Clark, Phillipou, or Ginbey.

Hollands and Weddle were later in the round but weren't considered as high a prospect at the time. Crystal ball to have taken those guys as well as Jones and Gruzewski who were even later. It really was a dud draft

Yeah as disappointing as Clark has been, the alternatives don't do anything to wet the appetite.

Hollands wouldn't get a game for us with his ball use/position, and Phillipou is a middling player at best that gets by on potential. That charmed treatment will run out pretty soon if it's not capitalised on.

Ginbey is a fine player, and a clear upgrade over Clark, but I can't say I'm losing sleep over not using our top 10 pick on the second coming of Jake Kolodjashnij. He'd be handy, but he's not one where you look back in haste that you passed him up.

Weddle stings a bit, but he was clearly never on anyone's radar in the top 10. He might as well have been a pick in the 40s from where we were selecting, a bit like Warner in '19.

 

[dudusmaximus]

explosion to the building as he drives out of the car park.

Getting some "Enemy of the State" vibes here..

 

[Commando]

Nah he was gone and never getting to our pick.

Our choices really were Clark, Phillipou, or Ginbey.

Hollands and Weddle were later in the round but weren't considered as high a prospect at the time. Crystal ball to have taken those guys as well as Jones and Gruzewski who were even later. It really was a dud draft

Thanks
Wasn't trying to Clark bash I must have heard wrong when they were talking about BH on the radio

 

[dangerwood]

I'm very keen on Butters but with so much competition, we can't get into a bidding war and then also trade for him. I'd rather pay overs, and sign as a free agent.
I don't want to pay $2m for 10 years and then have to trade 3 first rounders as well.
If we are going to have to trade for him, then I think we need him to come for under market value.

 

[foxdog50]

I wonder St Kilda paying ridiculous money for players. I wonder what we could do and try to get Darcy Wilson from there. Geelong were interested in him in his draft year. Would be bloody good on the other wing , playing with Dempsey. Hasn't signed from his 1st contract.
I know he isn't a huge fan of Lyon

 

[Tony Barber]

I'm very keen on Butters but with so much competition, we can't get into a bidding war and then also trade for him. I'd rather pay overs, and sign as a free agent.
I don't want to pay $2m for 10 years and then have to trade 3 first rounders as well.
If we are going to have to trade for him, then I think we need him to come for under market value.

The big issue is this.
We have Holmes. We have Smith.

Who do you want along side them for 6 years?

Personally I think that 8% of the salary cap on one player is nuts.
But... again, who do you want along side them?

 

[Kobe Gryant]

I'm very keen on Butters but with so much competition, we can't get into a bidding war and then also trade for him. I'd rather pay overs, and sign as a free agent.
I don't want to pay $2m for 10 years and then have to trade 3 first rounders as well.
If we are going to have to trade for him, then I think we need him to come for under market value.

It all comes down to how we look for me.

If we're on the cusp again this year, whether that be winning it, or getting close but just not having enough against those Suns, Lions and Dogs midfields, then we owe it to ourselves to give it everything IMO.

I'd prefer your method of going all out to get him as a FA, but that comes down to both our position, and Ports.

If they suck this year, and we finish high, they might be inclined to take the compo pick. We've seen last year that clubs have given up on predicting the cliff, and Carlton expected all of our picks to be in the twenties.

If they finish mid-table though, I doubt it. They'd take the risk that we have a down year in the next couple of years, and just bleed us dry for three or four first round picks.

I don't hate that idea, but back to my first point, it depends on how we look. If we're middling this year, selling your future in both cap and draft captital is a huge risk.

I think the list is in decent shape, but is it in such good shape that we could afford to lose all of that capital for 3-4 years? Time will tell, and this year will tell us a lot IMO.

 

[dangerwood]

The big issue is this.
We have Holmes. We have Smith.

Who do you want along side them for 6 years?

Personally I think that 8% of the salary cap on one player is nuts.
But... again, who do you want along side them?

I want Butters but the salary plus trading is a huge cost
Stkilda putting up those numbers for NWM and TDK didn't cost them trades as well.
Cameron and Danger we still traded for but their contract was unders.

Whilst Cameron is still playing, maybe you do it, get another flag....

I love Butters. Spending too much and losing picks might mean you lose Holmes in 2 years.

 

[year of the cat]

I wonder St Kilda paying ridiculous money for players. I wonder what we could do and try to get Darcy Wilson from there. Geelong were interested in him in his draft year. Would be bloody good on the other wing , playing with Dempsey. Hasn't signed from his 1st contract.
I know he isn't a huge fan of Lyon

Not sure how he played against the D’s but Wilson made some howling decision making and skill errors against the Pies.

 

[MacStradbroke]

Yeah as disappointing as Clark has been, the alternatives don't do anything to wet the appetite.

Hollands wouldn't get a game for us with his ball use/position, and Phillipou is a middling player at best that gets by on potential. That charmed treatment will run out pretty soon if it's not capitalised on.

Ginbey is a fine player, and a clear upgrade over Clark, but I can't say I'm losing sleep over not using our top 10 pick on the second coming of Jake Kolodjashnij. He'd be handy, but he's not one where you look back in haste that you passed him up.

Weddle stings a bit, but he was clearly never on anyone's radar in the top 10. He might as well have been a pick in the 40s from where we were selecting, a bit like Warner in '19.

Agree was a poor draft, a lot of recent ones are. There’s only been one star drafted outside r1 this decade (not including academy) and it’s Max Holmes. The fact we’ve been able to add Mannagh, Neale and Humphries late is gold when having a quick look through the recent drafts.

On 2022, Ginbey is back pocket player in the worst team we’ve ever seen, and Philipou, if he’s on a million bucks per year then I’d rather Clark on minimum chips.

 

[year of the cat]

Agree was a poor draft, a lot of recent ones are. There’s only been one star drafted outside r1 this decade (not including academy) and it’s Max Holmes. The fact we’ve been able to add Mannagh, Neale and Humphries late is gold when having a quick look through the recent drafts.

On 2022, Ginbey is back pocket player in the worst team we’ve ever seen, and Philipou, if he’s on a million bucks per year then I’d rather Clark on minimum chips.

Chad Warner?

 

[MacStradbroke]

Chad Warner?

I knew someone one would look harder than I did . Yeah he’s a ripper, he’s half as good as Max though.

 

[Pure_Ownage]

Jesus! 1m a year for phillipo!! Where are saints getting this money from!! Their cap must be about to erupt like a volcano

They would be front loading the money because they have cap room.

 

[Pure_Ownage]

Did I hear Humphrey was drafted after Clark?

No 2 picks before.

 

[Kobe Gryant]

Agree was a poor draft, a lot of recent ones are. There’s only been one star drafted outside r1 this decade (not including academy) and it’s Max Holmes. The fact we’ve been able to add Mannagh, Neale and Humphries late is gold when having a quick look through the recent drafts.

On 2022, Ginbey is back pocket player in the worst team we’ve ever seen, and Philipou, if he’s on a million bucks per year then I’d rather Clark on minimum chips.

If we give a bit of creative license and count our trade-ins as our own picks, we suddenly look like we've got two unbelievable draft classes in three years.

2020: Holmes, Bruhn, Neale, and Henry.

Early days still, and we're backing that Neale and Bruhn continue their displayed improvement, but that's ridiculous. If Ollie could finally pull his finger out it could look generational in 5-10 years.

2023: O'Sullivan, Edwards, Mannagh, Stevens, Humphries, Wiltshire.

Another where we're going early, but it looks like an elite CHB, FWD/MID, a promising young ruck, and a very good half back flanker.

To get that out of two drafts that were described as some of the worst ever going into them is a huge testament to Wells & Co.

A bit like the early 2000s, it's those elite draft classes that set you up long term, particularly without them all being elite picks.

Compare that to Collingwood for instance, who can barely find one player per draft these days - if that.

 

[Pure_Ownage]

It all comes down to how we look for me.

If we're on the cusp again this year, whether that be winning it, or getting close but just not having enough against those Suns, Lions and Dogs midfields, then we owe it to ourselves to give it everything IMO.

I'd prefer your method of going all out to get him as a FA, but that comes down to both our position, and Ports.

If they suck this year, and we finish high, they might be inclined to take the compo pick. We've seen last year that clubs have given up on predicting the cliff, and Carlton expected all of our picks to be in the twenties.

If they finish mid-table though, I doubt it. They'd take the risk that we have a down year in the next couple of years, and just bleed us dry for three or four first round picks.

I don't hate that idea, but back to my first point, it depends on how we look. If we're middling this year, selling your future in both cap and draft captital is a huge risk.

I think the list is in decent shape, but is it in such good shape that we could afford to lose all of that capital for 3-4 years? Time will tell, and this year will tell us a lot IMO.

If the afl changes the rule such that compo picks only start from pick 9 onwards then they will 100 % match. They will want lots of picks for cochrane and pilot.

 

[CatToTheFuture]

If we give a bit of creative license and count our trade-ins as our own picks, we suddenly look like we've got two unbelievable draft classes in three years.

2020: Holmes, Bruhn, Neale, and Henry.

Early days still, and we're backing that Neale and Bruhn continue their displayed improvement, but that's ridiculous. If Ollie could finally pull his finger out it could look generational in 5-10 years.

2023: O'Sullivan, Edwards, Mannagh, Stevens, Humphries, Wiltshire.

Another where we're going early, but it looks like an elite CHB, FWD/MID, a promising young ruck, and a very good half back flanker.

To get that out of two drafts that were described as some of the worst ever going into them is a huge testament to Wells & Co.

A bit like the early 2000s, it's those elite draft classes that set you up long term, particularly without them all being elite picks.

Compare that to Collingwood for instance, who can barely find one player per draft these days - if that.

2020 and 2023 looking but 2021/22 is being held up by Ollie Dempsey at this point. Some potential with Clark, Conway, and Knevitt.

 

[thegerman]

It's a two horse race at this point and that seems to be the word coming out of media and player manager circles. Things can change but this has a Bailey Smith feel about it. Losing games like that to North on the weekend won't really help Port sell the story for him to stay.

The Hawks were all in on Merrett, and that's said to largely be that they are not confident on Butters. The same Hawks insiders saying that, are the same that told me the club always knew Smith was going to Geelong.

It's Cats or Dogs. Everything I'm hearing is that it's in that order. Property interests much closer to Geelong than some realise, and whilst that means he could still commute to Footscray for training, it's also more unlikely given the 2 hour round trip 2-3 times a week is very appealing. And the other big factor is playing 8-9 games a uyear in your "backyard" whereas the Bulldogs home games still involve the travel factor whichever way you look at it.

And from a cap perspective, I think a couple of potential retirements at years end (Danger Stanley and Kolo) frees up some cap space. Knevitt and Wiltshire likely cut.

I’d say Blitz more than Kolo. However we’ve not seen Kolo for a year.

 

[Kobe Gryant]

2020 and 2023 looking but 2021/22 is being held up by Ollie Dempsey at this point. Some potential with Clark, Conway, and Knevitt.

Can't win 'em all, and when the ROI is as good as it's been from Ollie, I'm okay with that hit.

Might end up akin to the '02/04 drafts were we didn't get much outside of Mackie and Lonergan, after the big '99/01 hauls ('20/'23).

Edit: Egan and Nablett too, but injuries and outside issues screwed us there.

 

[Footy Smarts]

Agree was a poor draft, a lot of recent ones are. There’s only been one star drafted outside r1 this decade (not including academy) and it’s Max Holmes. The fact we’ve been able to add Mannagh, Neale and Humphries late is gold when having a quick look through the recent drafts.

On 2022, Ginbey is back pocket player in the worst team we’ve ever seen, and Philipou, if he’s on a million bucks per year then I’d rather Clark on minimum chips.

Agreed on Phillipou. If he rates himself high enough to ask for that sort of money after doing nothing so far I'll take Clark every day.

Ginbey is the one guy who was clearly in that range who is well ahead of Clark. He was excellent last year and will be a Jake Kolodjashnij at worst or a Nick Vlastuin if he keeps improving.

But it's not a staggering miss. Clark could still develop and it just looks like that pick wasn't very valuable.

 

[Lingsface]

Gruzewski had a ripping VFL game last year against us - the one where Mollier kicked 4-5 goals. If I remember correctly, he was basically keeping them in it for a big part of the game. Now he's getting senior games, feels like he'd be tougher to pry out of GWS.

While Cadman is out though. He is first on the chopping block.

 

[Lingsface]

Can't win 'em all, and when the ROI is as good as it's been from Ollie, I'm okay with that hit.

Might end up akin to the '02/04 drafts were we didn't get much outside of Mackie and Lonergan, after the big '99/01 hauls ('20/'23).

Edit: Egan and Nablett too, but injuries and outside issues screwed us there.

21 Dempsey is rookie draft so technically a part of the 20 draft?

 

[CatToTheFuture]

Agreed on Phillipou. If he rates himself high enough to ask for that sort of money after doing nothing so far I'll take Clark every day.

Ginbey is the one guy who was clearly in that range who is well ahead of Clark. He was excellent last year and will be a Jake Kolodjashnij at worst or a Nick Vlastuin if he keeps improving.

But it's not a staggering miss. Clark could still develop and it just looks like that pick wasn't very valuable.

I wouldn't blame the player for the cheque the club writes