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
​

 

[Yawkey way]

Seriously the self flagellation on here is epic.

The club like every other club enters trade week with a list of trades they want to get done and a wish list. Some trades are easier than others some you know you need to put the cash on the table like Flander and pick 7.

Before talks started and other clubs piled on we may have hoped to argue GC down maybe even receive a second coming back our way, that didn’t happen.

While this is going on the flip side is you’re fielding offers on your own players and some teams don’t want to play ball. They’re offering unders despite st Kilda holding the whip hand. This deal stalls and looks like it’s not happening, if it doesn’t you’re down a list spot and the pick/picks you planned to have aren’t there.

That’s the reality of trade week, now how in that scenario can a player and his manager claim to have a gauranteed deal with us or any other club. Put simply they don’t, at best they have an understanding that if things work out as we’d planned we’ll attempt to bring him to our club.

There are so many variables you can’t guarantee anything. Aleer nether had a guarantee and as 5th banana in order of importance if he couldn’t foresee this happening then he wasn’t paying attention and his manager must be a little a slow.

Have a look at the utter turmoil caused by teams trying to poach high profile contracted players only at this point in time to leave everyone hanging.

Yep we’re definitely the bad guys because the backup project players deal appears to be off the table. I’m not interested in could we have made this happen because of course we could. I’m interested in how teams are built, how priorities change, who wins and who loses. The afl couldn’t care less, they know there are always winners and losers, drama equals clicks and their burning oxygen out of season.

 

[Saint Bostriots]

This man gets it too!

I feel like you're trying to tell us something. I just don't know what it is.

 

[TheOsprey]

Intriguing there has been absolute silence from the club and it’s been at least 24 hours now? Since this news broke.

You’d think they’d try to get on top of it and control the narrative… unless there is something in the works?

I like it, fk em, they don’t need to say anything to the media.

 

[westernsainter]

Everyone will heap it on us now, but if Aleer gets dropped even once next year the media narrative will pretty quickly shift to talking about how shrewd we were, smart to pull out of a deal late etc. If he has a great year and we don't I'm sure we will cop it, but people have very short memories when it comes to this stuff.

 

[Windtagger]

Heath out Soldo in seems like a downgrade.

 

[NAS THE GOAT]

Mackie from the Cats about to be on trade radio with the 3 stooges. May be interesting?

 

[westernsainter]

Heath out Soldo in seems like a downgrade.

If we hold on to Marshall and have TDK I'd far prefer to have a proven albeit somewhat ordinary ruck in the wings than a four game project player.

 

[bird_man]

Heath out Soldo in seems like a downgrade.

Dodson should be next in line anyway so it shouldn't really matter

 

[Rogue Warrior]

I genuinely don't understand how you or anyone can make this call with a straight face. There are multiple financial executives, tonnes of staff and millions of dollars involved. Do you think we don't have 10-15 different permutations and combinations of player salary projections mapped out and planned years in advance? 100's of scenarios regarding what would happen if "x" player signs with us? If Steele leaves or stays, Marshall stays or leaves.

We're trading picks in 2027 for crying out loud.

The business i work at has rolling projections on everything from CAPEX to Overheads updated daily for the next 2 years and we are 10th of the size of an AFL club, with 1/10th of the manpower in charge of it.

Do you honestly think that a professional AFL club realised they didn't have enough money for a player 5 days into the trade period? Or that we were relying on a player leaving (Marshall/Steele) even though we have barely tried to offload them?
Seriously? This isn't FIFA Career Mode

I also, laughed at Jenkins insinuation. Simple minds see the world with a simple lens.
He thinks sos has player salaries in his iPhone notes and using a calculator to add the salary of the new recruits once they sign. Oh no! All of a sudden we have used up our salary cap

 

[Remboy]

Not even an exodus….

What are you talking about? Heath’s leaving and Aleer’s not coming. It’s a total disaster I tell ya!
If we’re still looking at off loading Marshall, maybe we can get Geelong’s first and give that to GWS for Aleer (it is virtually a second after all) and everyone will be completely pissed off.

 

[Diehard Saint]

RIght now neither him nor his management would urinate on us if we caught fire. This wont happen take it to the bank

Which is fine. Because I don’t think we actually want him now that we have JSOS.
Opportunity knocks, you take it.

 

[moirae42]

Soldo........

What the actual ****.

 

[sainter7]

Andrew Mackie

Andrew Mackie

Age

41

Ht

193cm

Wt

82kg

Pos.

Def

Career

Season

Last 5

D

19.2

5star

K

12.6

5star

HB

6.6

4star

M

5.7

5star

T

2.1

4star

MG

346.7

5star

No current season stats available

D

9.0

3star

K

6.2

3star

HB

2.8

3star

M

2.6

3star

T

2.2

4star

thinks he's so righteous, laughable

 

[Diehard Saint]

St Kilda are the new darlings of the press. Just look at these gems about our latest act of treachery.

1) 'leaving Aleer in limbo'
2) 'recruits to second-guess the Saints’ reliability in future'
3) 'unexpected pivots'
4) 'Saints quietly pulled out'
5) 'Trust is currency in trade dealings.'
6) 'high-profile backflip'
7) 'Without him, St Kilda will..potentially sacrifice defensive balance.'
8) 'raises questions about cap management'

Saints’ Trade Ghost: The Leek Aleer Bounce That Never Was

Leek Aleer officially requested a move to St Kilda—but by mid-October the Saints had walked away. The sudden back-flip leaves questions about their list strategy, credibility in trade circles, and what lies next for the GWS defender.

www.bigfooty.com

Hang on, don’t sell us short, you forgot the first….
“There’s going to be an exodus at the Saints.”

 

[Verdun66]

I have never had regard for the Purple bloke. And Josh Jenkins

11

Josh Jenkins

Age

36

Ht

200cm

Wt

108kg

Pos.

F/R

Career

Season

Last 5

D

12.9

3star

K

9.1

4star

HB

3.8

3star

M

5.1

5star

T

2.4

4star

G

2.1

5star

No current season stats available

D

11.0

3star

K

7.6

3star

HB

3.4

3star

M

4.6

5star

T

1.2

3star

G

1.6

5star

getting a gig in the media is unfathonable. I said as much in a post during the year. Nothing has changed my mind.

 

[Parkysp]

Laughable because he's pissed his pants and told the whole world that his client is on holidays in Europe literally crying? I mean, what the **** is this shit? Daffy Duck hour?

Can't wait for the Griswalds holiday vacation style snaps to be released on his European sojourn with a big wide smile plastered across his face. "Crying on the inside" will be the AFL world response though I guess to keep the Saints shamed.

 

[Armoooo]

Do the idiots on the main board seriously think Aleer is better than Silvagni?

I don't know much about Aleer.

But I've seen plenty of JSOS over the years and he's ok. Very versatile in that he's mostly serviceable in multiple positions.

But he's not a gun by any stretch of the imagination. I've seen some people suggesting he's a good Battle replacement, but he's nowhere near Battle IMO.

 

[gringo2011]

Making statements like Liam Ryan won't do much for us.
Dunno, seems like a throwaway line.
Probably has already boosted membership, for anyone who has seen his highlights reel, there's alot of entertainment there.
And I bet that there is going to be more kids 'bed wetting' in anticipation of seeing a speccy or weaving through traffic, from him.
I'm excited until l'm not.

Genuine make something out of nothing type. He’ll win his own ball and score against the flow. He’s a lot like Hall where he turns half chances into goals.

 

[Saint Bostriots]

Mackie saying he's not sure what we are wanting after knocking back their 1st this year. Looks like we've gone full mute.

 

[Geezington]

So is this Butler thing real and happening?

now that Ainsworth has gone I think its a pretty good chance

 

[Tommy Wigs]

I genuinely don't understand how you or anyone can make this call with a straight face. There are multiple financial executives, tonnes of staff and millions of dollars involved. Do you think we don't have 10-15 different permutations and combinations of player salary projections mapped out and planned years in advance? 100's of scenarios regarding what would happen if "x" player signs with us? If Steele leaves or stays, Marshall stays or leaves.

We're trading picks in 2027 for crying out loud.

The business i work at has rolling projections on everything from CAPEX to Overheads updated daily for the next 2 years and we are 10th of the size of an AFL club, with 1/10th of the manpower in charge of it.

Do you honestly think that a professional AFL club realised they didn't have enough money for a player 5 days into the trade period? Or that we were relying on a player leaving (Marshall/Steele) even though we have barely tried to offload them?
Seriously? This isn't FIFA Career Mode

Ha ha yep.

About as bright as the Essendon morons that think we have to chip in for Steele’s salary because he is on a back ended contract . And that he never got “paid” for his AA years.

Who do they think the money went to - Bont and Daics or other Elites?

How you can think that a club struggling to scrape together 80% of the cap would leave one dude on a back ended >$1.1m contract is just … just .. speechless, Im without speech.

 

[Armoooo]

What's Geezer talking about pick 29? How do we get that?

Surely Butler doesn't get that?

If so, let's trade 29 for Aleer and put this unpleasantness behind us

 

[DT_35]

Humpas mate going in on GC Insta

 

[Remboy]

Intriguing there has been absolute silence from the club and it’s been at least 24 hours now? Since this news broke.

You’d think they’d try to get on top of it and control the narrative… unless there is something in the works?

There’s probably no point. Nothing the club says is going what everyone is already saying. This time next week it will be old news.

 

[MrFoster]

We might end up with 29 from the gc

Probably pick 50 + Butler out, pick 29 in.