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
​

 

[mighty_sainters]

 

[stavro#4]

Not that we didn't want him.

Repeat after me.

LIST SPOTS!

You need to stop with this.

Your work has shown that at minimum Dow needs to be moved to the rookie list. A move that clubs make every season and a player not a single other club would consider drafting.

 

[puppy_dog7]

So they just said no. But instead of the haggling continuing it was just aborted. The Giants thought the Saints would come back with something else.
“Liam Ryan

1

Liam Ryan

Age

29

Ht

181cm

Wt

76kg

Pos.

Fwd

Career

Season

Last 5

D

11.3

3star

K

8.6

3star

HB

2.7

2star

M

3.0

3star

T

2.0

4star

G

1.3

5star

D

9.9

3star

K

8.0

3star

HB

1.9

1star

M

3.3

3star

T

1.6

3star

G

1.3

5star

D

11.4

3star

K

9.0

4star

HB

2.4

3star

M

3.8

4star

T

1.8

4star

G

1.6

5star

, as it turns out, was done for that 2026 future second while the Saints got a 2027 third back for him.


Haha that is hilarious! Basically a big **** you to the giants

 

[Armoooo]

I can't believe there are people suggesting we have handled this well. Some even saying Aleer and the manager are the bad guys.

It's proof some fans will just back the club in no matter what. It's been really poorly handled and makes us look very unprofessional.

Yep, not even suggesting the PSD as a live option suggest that we've had some buyers remorse.

Maybe there's someone else coming in, maybe we didnt expect all 5 to nominate us, maybe we thought Steele would find a new home, maybe the extra cash for Wilkie ruined everything.

I don't know.

Its a big **** up, still a great trade period all up, but there's no need to try and defend this.

 

[bird_man]

So they just said no. But instead of the haggling continuing it was just aborted. The Giants thought the Saints would come back with something else.
“Liam Ryan, as it turns out, was done for that 2026 future second while the Saints got a 2027 third back for him.


Haha that is hilarious! Basically a big **** you to the giants

Not just a big **** you to the Giants but also Aleer and his manager

 

[The Punter]

Sounds like we're done.

 

[CaptainRisky]

Why?

Geelong haven’t wanted to pony up what we wanted for Marshall. That seems to be okay for them.

So the old two wrongs don't make it right

 

[chris_h_11]

I find this very bizarre.

Didn't we say we'd been talking to GWS well aged of Trade Week and that both parties were relatively happy. Surely a deal would have been discussed? Has GWS upper their price, needing additional pick to get Oliver perhaps?

And the board intervention doesn't sit right. Maybe just an excuse from our side?? The board knows we had 3 trades to do, and didn't have a 2nd this year, so future picks were always going to be involved.

 

[bird_man]

Yep, not even suggesting the PSD as a live option suggest that we've had some buyers remorse.

Maybe there's someone else coming in, maybe we didnt expect all 5 to nominate us, maybe we thought Steele would find a new home, maybe the extra cash for Wilkie ruined everything.

I don't know.

Its a big **** up, still a great trade period all up, but there's no need to try and defend this.

Spot on.

There's clearly more to it than just the Giants asking a second rounder 6 days out from cut off.

Anyone that can't see that chooses not to see that.

 

[stavro#4]

Yep, not even suggesting the PSD as a live option suggest that we've had some buyers remorse.

Maybe there's someone else coming in, maybe we didnt expect all 5 to nominate us, maybe we thought Steele would find a new home, maybe the extra cash for Wilkie ruined everything.

I don't know.

Its a big **** up, still a great trade period all up, but there's no need to try and defend this.

Not just a big **** you to the Giants but also Aleer and his manager

PSD is only an option if the manager and player are willing to go down that route.

The manager slammed us for not paying a second round pick.

Which side do you think he sided with?

 

[CaptainRisky]

Not that we didn't want him.

Repeat after me.

LIST SPOTS!

Did you make that up all by yourself , Bravo

 

[stavro#4]

So the old two wrongs don't make it right

No, the old we aren’t bound to pay whatever other clubs ask for if they aren’t willing to do the same in return.

 

[Armoooo]

Why?

Geelong haven’t wanted to pony up what we wanted for Marshall. That seems to be okay for them.

It is entirely different.

A contracted player not being able to go to the other club he would like to play for is a world of difference to an uncontracted player (ahead of the biggest contracted of his career), making an agreement with one club, basically closing down 17 other options, only for it to come undone with 5 days to spare.

If you think saints have a right to screw over players and you don't care because they're not one of our guys, just say it. There's no argument against it.

But trying to act like this is something that happens regularly is ridiculous.

 

[beside the seaside]

The Giants asking price was insane.

 

[BrutThough]

PSD is only an option if the manager and player are willing to go down that route.

The manager slammed us for not paying a second round pick.

Which side do you think he sided with?

There has been some comments saying 'we wouldnt have done this if it was a big management group'. And that is probably correct.

But a big management group would also be directly involved in negotiations to get clubs the picks they need for the deal to happen. And it looks like this manager wasn't doing that.

 

[CaptainRisky]

PSD is only an option if the manager and player are willing to go down that route.

The manager slammed us for not paying a second round pick.

Which side do you think he sided with?

I'm being serious here , i would have thought the dealing was between us and Giants to work out a suitable arrangement , what does the manager have to do with that side of things ?

 

[stavro#4]

It is entirely different.

A contracted player not being able to go to the other club he would like to play for is a world of difference to an uncontracted player (ahead of the biggest contracted of his career), making an agreement with one club, basically closing down 17 other options, only for it to come undone with 5 days to spare.

If you think saints have a right to screw over players and you don't care because they're not one of our guys, just say it. There's no argument against it.

But trying to act like this is something that happens regularly is ridiculous.

Based on your opinion here, if the giants wanted a first rounder - we should pay it.

That’s not how this works. We evidently rated Aleer slightly higher than Heath and were willing to smooth over the deal with a swap of seconds.

For negotiations to fall apart. It’s clearly been made clear that second round pick only going to the giants was a non negotiable

 

[Armoooo]

PSD is only an option if the manager and player are willing to go down that route.

The manager slammed us for not paying a second round pick.

Which side do you think he sided with?

Well GWS asking a price that we might think it overs, but the AFL public in general wouldn't find outlandish, with half the trade period to go.

St Kilda have completely walked away, apparently without so much as a phone call.

Its pretty obvious what side the manager is and should be on.

Maybe if we spoke to him before hand the PSD threat would have been on the cards. So we either had buyers remorse, or we failed to do our due diligence.

 

[CaptainRisky]

No, the old we aren’t bound to pay whatever other clubs ask for if they aren’t willing to do the same in return.

Sure it needs to be reasonable but Geelong is nothing to do with us dealing with the giants

 

[bird_man]

No, the old we aren’t bound to pay whatever other clubs ask for if they aren’t willing to do the same in return.

Right, so it wasn't worth doing what literally happens every year and hold off to see if the other club is posturing or finding some middle ground in the final day?

Come on mate, I know you love the club and will go to any extreme to put a positive spin on every decision, but if you can't see that we have just got buyer remorse in this situation you are blind.

 

[Fluttz]

I see the bed wetters are out in force again after yesterday's announcement. Funny how the dees did it to Derksen and not one word but saints do it and tomorrow is the start of the apocalypse and the world ending. Good on the saints for not rolling over.

 

[dougiemac]

Also think we’ve done Geelong a favour. We wanted their 2026 first, but they would like to keep it to get Curnow after finally getting Curnow’s word (He is training with Bailey Smith). we said ok, but if you land Curnow, then we get SDK and a second round pick, hence the reason we pulled the Aleer deal. If unexpected a much better player is made available, wouldn’t you do the same? Or alternatively, if GWS all of a sudden offered Aleer $200k a year more than us, do you think his commitment to us is still the same? The moral outrage showed by the media is really embarrassing.

Exactly. A business deal fell through. Boo hoo, happens every day.

 

[CaptainRisky]

PS , I'm not concerned we didn't get Aleer as i don't rate him anyway as iv said all along on here ,

 

[The Punter]

The mistake was the club not calling Aleer first before the deal falling apart went public. That's it.

 

[stavro#4]

There has been some comments saying 'we wouldnt have done this if it was a big management group'. And that is probably correct.

But a big management group would also be directly involved in negotiations to get clubs the picks they need for the deal to happen. And it looks like this manager wasn't doing that.

I'm being serious here , i would have thought the dealing was between us and Giants to work out a suitable arrangement , what does the manager have to do with that side of things ?

Most trades are brokered via agents as they use their staple of players to bring in other clubs to smooth over deals.

Looks like tiny guy has had Aleer stung because he doesn’t have that scope.