List Mgmt. 2025 List Management Discussion - Part IV

[Hubnester]

2025 List Management Discussion - Part 4

Now that our season is over, and news is starting to break - it's time for a fresh thread.

This thread is to discuss all things list management - trades, draft, free agency, delistings and more.
As we are now officially in our off-season, we'll be wanting to keep this thread more strictly on-topic than the previous iterations.
Be respectful. You are allowed to disagree with someone - but play the ball, not the man. Repeat offenders will have their posting rights revoked.

Thanks to Lore once again for this incredibly useful spreadsheet.

2025 KEY DATES
Free Agency Period: Friday, October 3rd - Friday, October 10th
Trade Period: Monday, October 6th - Wednesday, October 15th
AFL Draft: Wednesday, November 19th - Thursday, November 20th

See Also:
2025 Year in Review Rumours & Confirmed Movements 2025 Draft Discussion
​

 

[Saintos The ITK]

Videos

Hear from recruit Tom De Koning as officially becomes a Saint.

www.saints.com.au

What language is that interviewer speaking???

 

[Joffaboy]

Zorko has speed and skill. If Steele had those they wouldn’t have had that conversation.

Check yourself champ, you aren't dual AA if you don't have skill. He is not the quickest in AFL but also not slow.
The takes from nuffies on Steele here is Facebook like smooth brained.

 

[stavro#4]

 

[stavro#4]

Check yourself champ, you are dual.AA if you don't have skill. He is not the quickest in AFL but also not slow.
The takes from nuffies on Steele here is Facebook like smooth brained.

Zorko is an elite kick and smooth mover among traffic.

Steele is neither.

That’s not an attack on him.

 

[SG34]

Steelo always looked like a reluctant captain from my 42cm screen, 8100 km from Melbourne. But i sense this - I reckon he'll be a happier player, and maybe a better player being free of it.

I do wonder who calls the shots game day nowadays, and especially ever since RTB came back, but we will see pretty soon enough what unfolds. What are your guesses? A half-forward?

 

[bird_man]

List of mids who played at least 15 games in 2025 and averaged between 20 and 21 disposals per game:

Jack Steele
Jack Crisp
Josh Ward
James Worpel
Liam Duggan
Travis Boak
Jason Horne-Francis

Both Crisp and Boak went in less than 20% of centre bounce attendances, not sure I'd call that a genuine mid.

Duggan was 4%

JHF averaged a goal a game playing 50/50 mid/forward.

Not great reading for Steele.

 

[Joffaboy]

Zorko is an elite kick and smooth mover among traffic.

Steele is neither.

That’s not an attack on him.

To say he is not skilled is incorrect. Or do they give out AA's to spuds nowadays. Was an absolute attack on him. Does Dangerfield have no skill because he is a poor kick?

 

[Stan_Darsh72]

Steelo always looked like a reluctant captain from my 42cm screen, 8100 km from Melbourne. But i sense this - I reckon he'll be a happier player, and maybe a better player being free of it.

I do wonder who calls the shots game day nowadays, and especially ever since RTB came back, but we will see pretty soon enough what unfolds. What are your guesses? A half-forward?

Wikie to captain and Enright to be given a lot more leeway.

 

[sammm]

Finally official

wasn't carlton hoping for both tdk and jsos to be band 1?

 

[Diehard Saint]

Yeesh

Wow. Pretty confident guy.
After serious injuries he reckons he can play till 35.
A little figjam-my for me.

 

[Tom12]

Honestly, I was so big on trading Steele + Marshall when it looked like we were going full re-build (before Naz broke out and we started attracting players to win over the next 2 years) but geez it's hard to pass up keeping Steele if he's wanting to stay and free of the captaincy, even if it's for depth.

If he wants to be here, compete and fight for a spot - good!

I WILL say however, the revisionist history is already starting RE his leadership - and while we certainly dont see what happens off the field - we lacked leadership in the midfield and have for a long time. His captaincy looked from the outside like it left alot to be desired and he dropped his head constantly during games - a fresh start for him and our midfield group is going to work wonders.

 

[Linton Street Saint]

Wow. Pretty confident guy.
After serious injuries he reckons he can play till 35.
A little figjam-my for me.

Honestly think he is just a shit bloke. Talented no doubt but not one you'd hang out with outside of the club. If it's not about Petracca, Petracca isn't interested.

 

[Armoooo]

So it's after 5, thats trade week over yeah? Did we get everyone we wanted?

 

[dudeintheswamp]

Watch Petracca move to the Gold Coast and instantly become a seafood expert

 

[ronnysnodgrass]

"Essendon Rocketing Into Promience"!

Is promience a pile of shit?

It’s actually Latin for “went to a prom, not the “big dance”

 

[Silkie]

So it's after 5, thats trade week over yeah? Did we get everyone we wanted?

Cal Wilkie

 

[Diehard Saint]

He is still a good player. But if everyone's fit. he probably plays in half forward line or in the VFL.

And that’s fine, if he chooses to stay.

The club have clearly been upfront, but respectful in its dealings discussing the options with him.

He’s not a stupid guy, I’d say most players become aware of their football mortality when they reach their 30s, and he’d have noticed the list building happening around him.

 

[gubby88]

Carlscum supporters taking it well

 

[Joffaboy]

Honestly, I was so big on trading Steele + Marshall when it looked like we were going full re-build (before Naz broke out and we started attracting players to win over the next 2 years) but geez it's hard to pass up keeping Steele if he's wanting to stay and free of the captaincy, even if it's for depth.

If he wants to be here, compete and fight for a spot - good!

I WILL say however, the revisionist history is already starting RE his leadership - and while we certainly dont see what happens off the field - we lacked leadership in the midfield and have for a long time. His captaincy looked from the outside like it left alot to be desired and he dropped his head constantly during games - a fresh start for him and our midfield group is going to work wonders.

The players kept picking him as captain so maybe they would know a bit about his captaincy.
No leadership in the midfield? He was our only midfielder for about 5 years and in that time win AA twice.

I have zero issues with what the club has told him today. I support a club not a player. Also he is not the player he was, mainly through injury.
I am excited we have got to a point that we have the soldiers to maybe move past Steele, but to say he showed no leadership in the mids, is just abject bullshit.
And if you say he wasn't a good captain, blame the whole playing group who kept voting him in.

 

[TheNewEnsign]

And that’s fine, if he chooses to stay.

The club have clearly been upfront, but respectful in its dealings discussing the options with him.

He’s not a stupid guy, I’d say most players become aware of their football mortality when they reach their 30s, and he’d have noticed the list building happening around him.

I think it's been handled really well tbh. I hope he stays; although I am huge wraps for Box, Garcia Pou and potentially Hall - we're talking about four guys who have a total of 100 AFL games combined. With Box and Hugo especially I would expect they are going to have some down patches of form over the next couple of years and will need spells in the VFL.

 

[Tom12]

The players kept picking him as captain so maybe they would know a bit about his captaincy.
No leadership in the midfield? He was our only midfielder for about 5 years and in that time win AA twice.

I have zero issues with what the club has told him today. I support a club not a player. Also he is not the player he was, mainly through injury.
I am excited we have got to a point that we have the soldiers to maybe move past Steele, but to say he showed no leadership in the mids, is just abject bullshit.
And if you say he wasn't a good captain, blame the whole playing group who kept voting him in.

The last 4 years have been pretty disastrous in terms of the results on field Joffa. I'm not going to sit here and pretend otherwise. 2020 (not captain) and 2021 (co-captain) were good.

Based on what I've seen watching the games, as it's all I can go off.

Not blaming anybody for it. You think differently - that is okay, but I am excited we are moving past this era and into 2026 with a fresh start as we've sorely needed it for years. Everybody at the club clearly knows it too.

 

[Diehard Saint]

Excuse me, the best looking is Stocks.

Straight male btw

Then your opinion doesn’t count

 

[True Believer]

Steelo always looked like a reluctant captain from my 42cm screen, 8100 km from Melbourne. But i sense this - I reckon he'll be a happier player, and maybe a better player being free of it.

I do wonder who calls the shots game day nowadays, and especially ever since RTB came back, but we will see pretty soon enough what unfolds. What are your guesses? A half-forward?

That's a very small TV these days....are you sure it's not 42" ??

 

[True Believer]

wasn't carlton hoping for both tdk and jsos to be band 1?

I think they were hoping they had a few more free agents and a potential new coach......

 

[Hayes4PM]

Carlscum supporters taking it well

View attachment 2445531

Very good areas from the St Kilda FC social media team. Probably 2nd only to GWS when on their game.