Players that your club turned down or gave away

[Sentinel]

North Melbourne had Tony Liberatore win a Morrish Medal (u19 league B&F) with them before letting him walk to Footscray after being stuck in the u19s and reserves.

He didn't immediately start playing regular senior football at the Bulldogs, but won a Brownlow a few years later in a career spanning 283 VFL/AFL games.

 

[Herne Hill Hammer]

And we gave away, Gary Dempsey, Burnie Quinlan, Kelvin Templeton and that guy who went to Carlton.

..you forgot Brownlow Medallist, Barry Round.

 

[Herne Hill Hammer]

North Melbourne had Tony Liberatore win a Morrish Medal (u19 league B&F) with them before letting him walk to Footscray after being stuck in the u19s and reserves.

He didn't immediately start playing regular senior football at the Bulldogs, but won a Brownlow a few years later in a career spanning 283 VFL/AFL games.

He also won two (2) Gardiner Medals (reserves league B&F).

 

[Sentinel]

He also won two (2) Gardiner Medals (reserves league B&F).

Yep, at Footscray though.

 

[Herne Hill Hammer]

We wouldnt have won flags. Ablett was toxic.

Selwood is the interesting one. Would he have accepted unders to stay through our flags ?

Bullshit, he just wouldn't have been given games if that were the case.

From the centreline forward, he could have replaced about 10 players in the '84 gf loss and the result could have been different. '87 could have been the same too and eventually you'd have kept the bloodlines too.

In then end, as Dermott likes to say, 'We won 5 flags during that period without him.'

 

[Herne Hill Hammer]

Carlton actually rejected Diesel Williams twice before Geelong picked him up for two (2) seasons, which yielded a B&F and a league MVP.

 

[Herne Hill Hammer]

Collingwood turned down SJ in the aftermath of the 2006 season. They didn't like his medical.

From that point on he would go on to play another 226 games, kick 408 goals, be awarded a Norm Smith '07, make the crucial, lateral kick to Ablett / Scarlett in the middle in the '09 gf (he did nothing else for the game) and destroy Collingwood in 2011 on one leg and was a three (3) time AA in that post 2006 period.

 

[BruceTempany14]

We took Griffen before Buddy. Griffen was good but..........

That draft ... ohhh that draft ....


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[HairyO]

Bullshit, he just wouldn't have been given games if that were the case.

From the centreline forward, he could have replaced about 10 players in the '84 gf loss and the result could have been different. '87 could have been the same too and eventually you'd have kept the bloodlines too.

In then end, as Dermott likes to say, 'We won 5 flags during that period without him.'

Yes, and we managed 4 flags without the bloodlines too.

I doubt any Hawthorn supporter feels like we missed out on GAS or GAJ.

 

[dustysnecktattoo]

In its own weird way could you say Richmond turned down lance franklin?

 

[RUNVS]

In its own weird way could you say Richmond turned down lance franklin?

Don't think that counts as this isn't really a thread about players teams should have taken higher in the draft. Rather it is players that teams actually had their hands on that they let go for one reason or another.

 

[QuietB]

Imagine Hawthorns late 80s team if they didn't let Gary Ablett and Darren Millane go.

I didn't know the Hawks had access to Milane - how did that work?

I think Stewart Lowe was a Hawthorn zone player. had Dermie and Dunstall at the time amongst others.

 

[stemline]

I didn't know the Hawks had access to Milane - how did that work?

I think he played U19s for HFC.

 

[Jimbojay]

Carlton gave away essentially it's forward line in 13-14 for nothing in Waite, Betts, Gartlett, Robinson.

Fev probably counts as being given away too, though technically "won" the Henderson trade.

 

[raymond35]

We wouldnt have won flags. Ablett was toxic.

Selwood is the interesting one. Would he have accepted unders to stay through our flags ?

Ummmm,.......no.

 

[raymond35]

I didn't know the Hawks had access to Milane - how did that work?

I think Stewart Lowe was a Hawthorn zone player. had Dermie and Dunstall at the time amongst others.

Millane trained with Hawthorn as he was somehow in their zone, but went back to Dandenong before going on to Collingwood.

 

[OneEyedHawk]

Bullshit, he just wouldn't have been given games if that were the case.

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GAS was an absolute scumbag, and he was toxic to a footy club. The implications of having a bloke like him around the place were far greater than simply the matchday selection issue of 'play or don't play'.

He could not have been more polar opposite to the HFC culture that the 80's success was predicated on if he tried. ​

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From the centreline forward, he could have replaced about 10 players in the '84 gf loss and the result could have been different. '87 could have been the same too and eventually you'd have kept the bloodlines too.

​

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No one is arguing that from a purely on-field perspective he couldn't have made an impact. Of course he would have. He's in the top 3 players of all time FFS.
The club wouldn't have been the same though. Whether we even made it through to the 84 or 87 GF is anyone's guess.

We were a lot better off without him.

 

[Beer n Skittles]

Carlton turned down everyone who didn't play for Carlton

 

[Sttew]

GAS was an absolute scumbag, and he was toxic to a footy club. The implications of having a bloke like him around the place were far greater than simply the matchday selection issue of 'play or don't play'.



He could not have been more polar opposite to the HFC culture that the 80's success was predicated on if he tried.





No one is arguing that from a purely on-field perspective he couldn't have made an impact. Of course he would have. He's in the top 3 players of all time FFS.
The club wouldn't have been the same though. Whether we even made it through to the 84 or 87 GF is anyone's guess.

We were a lot better off without him.

GAS's "toxicity" whilst playing the game is news to me. Why did the Hawks sign him up in the 90's?

 

[Herne Hill Hammer]

​

GAS was an absolute scumbag, and he was toxic to a footy club. The implications of having a bloke like him around the place were far greater than simply the matchday selection issue of 'play or don't play'.

He could not have been more polar opposite to the HFC culture that the 80's success was predicated on if he tried. ​

​

​

No one is arguing that from a purely on-field perspective he couldn't have made an impact. Of course he would have. He's in the top 3 players of all time FFS.
The club wouldn't have been the same though. Whether we even made it through to the 84 or 87 GF is anyone's guess.

We were a lot better off without him.

You'll never know if Hawthorn were better off or not.

I find it astonishing that a club that until the season immediately before Ablett arrived had a captain and vice captain that didn't speak unless it was on a footy field, that had two of his brothers, his brother-in-law and a copper for a coach couldn't have tamed him. Do you and Hairy O have such a low opinion of the club you follow?

 

[HairyO]

You'll never know if Hawthorn were better off or not.

I find it astonishing that a club that until the season immediately before Ablett arrived had a captain and vice captain that didn't speak unless it was on a footy field, that had two of his brothers, his brother-in-law and a copper for a coach couldn't have tamed him. Do you and Hairy O have such a low opinion of the club you follow?

Scott and Matthews were completely professional and did everything for the team. Their personal opinions didnt affect their games.

GAS didnt want to play for a team. He wanted his own rules.

The other Abletts were great team players. To this day Geoff still does a huge amount for the club.

 

[Scotland]

There aren't many famous "given away" Eagles. Players who leave generally do worse elsewhere, Brad Ebert the main exception.

Matt Clape played a few games in our flag years and was let go at the end of 1994. Played 23 games for Carlton in 1995 and won a flag.

Matthew Connell was around at the same time and played 3 games. Went to the Crows in 1995 and won the B&F then played in the 1997 and 1998 flags.

Matthew Spanger (we like cutting Matts) we let go and he was a journeyman at Sydnay and Hawthorn. Good on him for featuring in the 2014 flag.

Mitch Morton we let go and he played a couple of good years at Richmond and two good games at the Swans playing in the 2012 flag.

Scott Lycett we let go as a free agent so the next few years will show whether that was the right call.

As for players we turned down... probably should've put Tim Kelly on the rookie list around 2015/16.

 

[Nugett]

We wouldnt have won flags. Ablett was toxic.

Selwood is the interesting one. Would he have accepted unders to stay through our flags ?

would he have received as many free kicks? May as well not duck this question...

 

[cleanhands]

Does Adelaide and Pavlich come in at #1

 

[Herne Hill Hammer]

Scott and Matthews were completely professional and did everything for the team. Their personal opinions didnt affect their games.

GAS didnt want to play for a team. He wanted his own rules.

The other Abletts were great team players. To this day Geoff still does a huge amount for the club.

Not much of an answer.

Leigh Matthews was his captain, the feared Matthews, who was voted the player of the century.

An ex-copper as the coach.

Kevin and Geoff Ablett his brothers.

Michael Tuck his brother-in-law.

No one single one of them could get in his ear? Particularly his older brothers? Is that what you're claiming?

How do you know if he did or didn't want to play for a team and what rules he was prepared to play by?