Melbourne Clubs incompetent??

[fugitive]

I think this makes a lot of sense as said in Leigh Matthews words:

Essendon, Melbourne and Collingwood have constantly attacked the Lions’ extra salary cap to cover their own inadequacies in retaining players this week, and yesterday coach Leigh Matthews fired back.

Matthews seized on Bombers coach Kevin Sheedy’s assertions that he felt disloyal to the three premiership players his club was forced to trade due to a bursting salary cap. Matthews told an AAPT corporate lunch in Melbourne that he had heard a lot of talk about ‘disloyalty’ from clubs during the trading period.


He pointed out that Bomber Chris Heffernan had signed a three year contract halfway through the 2002 season and was in Italy when clubs were discussing his future on the first day of trade talks.

Similarly, Melbourne’s 2000 Brownlow Medallist Shane Woewodin ‘was on the beach somewhere’ in Mauritius when the shock call came to him about a trade to Collingwood.

“In footy, team comes first. But we owe each other honesty,” Matthews said.

“Sometimes we have to have conversations (with players) we don’t want to have.

“Melbourne and Essendon had to do what they did. But their failure, in my opinion, was not to tell the player first.

“Honesty is more important to me because loyalty is an often misused word.”

Despite winning consecutive premierships, the Lions have managed to retain the core of their playing group. A dozen players agreeing to pay cuts totalling almost $400,000 saved the club from axeings this year like occurred elsewhere.

The ability to keep the group together, and the good management to stay under the salary cap, has made the Lions an easy target for those who have not been so prudent, and the salary cap concession makes the club an easy target, despite the fact they are still pioneering AFL in the north.

Matthews has often voiced his fears for the game due to the actions of the “Melbourne mafia” this year, with Collingwood and Essendon threatening legal action if the AFL proceeded with allowing the Lions and Swans special concessions to draft local players in the future.

The irony of that is, as respected The Australian columnist Patrick Smith pointed out, that Sheedy now thinks giving the northerners preferential treatment for their zones is now a good idea in preference to the extra 10 percent margin with the salary cap, for the retention of players.

“The greatest threat to football is the strength of the lobby of the Melbourne clubs,” Matthews reiterated. “Their voice makes the commission run scared.”

Matthews did say that the AFL Commission was the envy of every other sport, because it was not run by the vested interests of individual clubs. But his concerns are growing.

Any comments Provincial town(Melbourne) club supporters??

 

[Navy Master]

If they had better zones etc. then they would have more local players, therefore less need for the bigger cap

It's what should've been done a long time ago

 

[Lockyer24]

Its easy to be 'loyal' when you have more money to spend on your players Leigh.

He's turning into as much as a ******** as Sheedy.

 

[Denno]

And its also easy to attack interstate clubs knowing, that if you get your way (which usually happens), you will prosper from the players that get homesick

 

[choppy]

I reckon its great, seeing Essendon and in particular that goose McMahon squirming and in the crapper.

Who has been a little bit naughty now, hey McMahon. Who is financially incomptent now.

Sympathy to the Essendon supporters though, it is a barstard seeing all your premiership hero's leave and play for another club.

 

[pivotal]

I think a question we can all ask is why didnt Essendon players take pay cuts so that they could retain their list? Are Brisbane players more loyal to the cause than Essendon players? We all saw James Hird cry not long ago when talking about his love for his teammates, yet he seems happy to eat up $800K a year. Voss didnt cry, he just took a paycut.

 

[fabulousphil]

Even if Essendon had the same salary cap as Brisbane whos to say that this wouldnt have happened anyway, if you cant spread 5.8 million or whatever the cap is among 38 players and everyone getting a great wage then theres something wrong.

Squirm you miserable Bomber bastards.

 

[fabulousphil]

Originally posted by pivotal
? Are Brisbane players more loyal to the cause than Essendon players?

undoubtedly

 

[topdon]

Originally posted by choppy
Who has been a little bit naughty now, hey McMahon. Who is financially incomptent now.

Yeah i know ... the Essendon Football Club is only going to post another paultry $800,000+ profit this season.

 

[choppy]

It is Essendons own fault that they have had to shaft off their premiership players.

They made an assumption or an inticipation that they could put Hird on the veterans list and the salary cap would increase more than it has.

Essendon supporters should be calling for Peter Jackson's head.

 

[Goo]

You know. You get a BIG bowl of jelly. Pop it out upside down and smack it with a spoon, and it wobbles round. smack it again. eventually bits will fall off and the chocky frog in the middle pops out.

Salary cap pressure will eventually tear any sucessful side up. Essendons seeing it now, and brisbane can see it coming.

Their chocky frogs might pop out sometime soon!!

 

[choppy]

Originally posted by topdon


Yeah i know ... the Essendon Football Club is only going to post another paultry $800,000+ profit this season.

And that paultry 800,000 enabled you to keep 5 of your premiership heroes didn't it.

Looks like the Essendon administration took their eye of the ball, to busy making money to concentrate on the basics like player retention and salary cap management.

Gets back to what is the point of a football club. To make money or win premierships. You have stuffed your chances of winning a premiership for the next 3 years.

By then Hird, Mercuri, Misiti, etc will be gone, Lloydy will be on crutches, in effect you are ****ed onfield because of your administration.

Sure you have alot of money but whats the friggen point of that.

 

[fabulousphil]

Originally posted by Goo
You know. You get a BIG bowl of jelly. Pop it out upside down and smack it with a spoon, and it wobbles round. smack it again. eventually bits will fall off and the chocky frog in the middle pops out.

Salary cap pressure will eventually tear any sucessful side up. Essendons seeing it now, and brisbane can see it coming.

Their chocky frogs might pop out sometime soon!!

Thats a novel way of explaining the complexities of the salary cap.

You say that Essendon has been a successful side, well they have won one premiership with this so called "best side ever".

Essendon have underachieved big time and they are now at best a middle of the road side.

BYE BYE BOMBERS.

 

[redback]

Hey Choppy about time you changed your avatar or havent you heard the bad news.

 

[choppy]

Originally posted by redback
Hey Choppy about time you changed your avatar or havent you heard the bad news.

News?? what news, whats happened.

 

[Portia]

Originally posted by choppy
News?? what news, whats happened.

Hawthorn took out a restraining order on Byron Pickett. Staying at North would've violated the conditions.

 

[topdon]

Originally posted by choppy

And that paultry 800,000 enabled you to keep 5 of your premiership heroes didn't it.

We were talking financial incompentancy right??

Every club in the AFL has a salary cap, meaning there is a cap to the amount you can spend on player payments. Tell me what that has to do with McMahon and his "financial incompetence"? Players demand more money (via their managers), clubs either come to an agreement or tell that player to bugger off and work out a reasonable trade. Caracella's manager put up a sum that would have seen him as the 3rd highest player at Essendon. Bugger that!! There are a number of factors to consider and it has NOTHING to do with McMahon's supposed financial incompetence.

You better stick to your own club, and enjoy it whilst it is still around!

 

[Danni]

Originally posted by topdon


and enjoy it whilst it is still around!

WHOAH!! Now that one is normally reserved for a comeback after someone has hit a nerve!

 

[redback]

Originally posted by Porthos
Hawthorn took out a restraining order on Byron Pickett. Staying at North would've violated the conditions.

 

[topdon]

Originally posted by Danni


WHOAH!! Now that one is normally reserved for a comeback after someone has hit a nerve!

Pardon?

Maybe you can explain how an $800,000 profit equates to financial mismanagement?

 

[Goo]

Originally posted by fabulousphil




You say that Essendon has been a successful side, well they have won one premiership with this so called "best side ever".

Essendon have underachieved big time and they are now at best a middle of the road side.

BYE BYE BOMBERS.

Underachieved - yeh sure. Although who puts that pressure on? Fans and media. But I agree. They should have done more with what they had

But still, they have been sucessful. Sydney are unsucessful. Freo is unsucessful. Bombers have been right up there for a few years now. Probably a good 12 other teams in the league would like to swap their positions with 'em over the last 5 years!

 

[Danni]

Originally posted by topdon


Pardon?

Maybe you can explain how an $800,000 profit equates to financial mismanagement?

Haha, nup not a chance of me explaining - I struggle to keep my own credit card under the limit for 14 consecutive days, without worrying myself over $800K.

All I'm saying is the 'your club is dying' type comments don't normally get pulled out unless for some reason or another a nerve has been hit.

 

[choppy]

Originally posted by topdon


We were talking financial incompentancy right??

Every club in the AFL has a salary cap, meaning there is a cap to the amount you can spend on player payments. Tell me what that has to do with McMahon and his "financial incompetence"? Players demand more money (via their managers), clubs either come to an agreement or tell that player to bugger off and work out a reasonable trade. Caracella's manager put up a sum that would have seen him as the 3rd highest player at Essendon. Bugger that!! There are a number of factors to consider and it has NOTHING to do with McMahon's supposed financial incompetence.

You better stick to your own club, and enjoy it whilst it is still around!

That fact that McMahon oversees an organisation that assumed 12 months ago that a rule would be changed enabling James Hird to be placed on the veterans list and thereby save half his money and also that 2 years ago they back ended a lot of your players contracts under the anticipation that the salary cap would increase significantly.

Tell me how the dogs can get pick 19 for Penny off of StKilda, North can get Leigh Brown and pick 31 for Pickett and yet Essendon only gets pick 30 for Blumfield.

You can't tell me your happy with your administration. I mean I reckon North got screwed on the Picket deal, you got shafted right up the clacker and McMahon, remember the bug stops with him, is to blame.

He has been very naughty with his recruiting.

 

[gozzo]

Would not worry too much about it, Top Don.

Welcome to silly season and the "I hate Essendon, so let's have a pop" forum.

One of the great things about football is that it is cyclical. You have to support your team in bad times as well as good.

Let's see how vocal some folk are, when the salary cap wheel turns to their club.

 

[fugitive]

Does anyone believe that the so called "Melbourne Lobby" can in reality affect AFL's decision making??

I thought the whithdrawl of draft concessions to Brisbane & to a certain extent Sydney was a direct result of Melbourne club's pressure.

I can imagine if Brisbane continues to enjoy the success it has had in the past couple of seasons all this salary cap issue will explode into some sort of coup but if a Melbourne club wins a premiership next year it will be all forgotten...it's as simple as that