Tom Harley's future

[Footy_Fan2007]

Re: Tom Harley.... playing on or finished ?

So today i was reading an article on my iphone from the Australian by Greg Denham, and found the following statement


WTF...since when has Harley said this season will be his last.... have i missed something ?

or is Denham just pulling this out of his ass ?

He hasn't announced it yet, but he proberbly will.
He is finish unfortunetly

 

[hamG]

Re: Tom Harley.... playing on or finished ?

Several media people have stated it will be his last season, not on authority but just a reasonable assumption.

I don't like the term "finished". Tom Harley retires.

 

[re cat]

Re: Tom Harley.... playing on or finished ?

So today i was reading an article on my iphone from the Australian by Greg Denham, and found the following statement


WTF...since when has Harley said this season will be his last.... have i missed something ?

or is Denham just pulling this out of his ass ?

Probably got it from the fact hat he and Felicity are getting married at the end of the year, she works in Sydney and they said they won't be living apart. Let's hope they work it out and his body holds up.

 

[jim boy]

Re: Tom Harley.... playing on or finished ?

There was a bit of talk that he was finished in 2006 with his 'chonic' hip issues. I won't write him off just yet

 

[Jumping Jack]

Re: Tom Harley.... playing on or finished ?

I've resisted posting about this because I think Tom Harley has been an outstanding person for the club and deserves to go out on his terms. Any speculation is unfair as I think most people would appreciate that he is a smart person and would not need to be told that the end is close.

I believe an announcement is imminent and would not be surprised if the team is told either leading into the finals or after the 1st final given that worst case scenario after the qualifying final would be that if we lose then we are only one game from the season - and possibly Harley's career being over.

What does surprise me though is that most of the speculation is around Harley when I would have thought that Milburn looks older and slower and far less capable of getting to contests that Harley. We need to remember that Harley did not get a pre-season and missed a big chunk of the season .... Milburn does'nt have the same excuse.

 

[True Blue Cat]

Re: Tom Harley.... playing on or finished ?

I did say awhile ago that if he injured himself again he wouldn't continue past this year and he has injured himself a few times since. I would have liked to see him keep playing but he is currently very injury proned and at this current time it does not appear that his body could hold out another season. So it isn't his work on ground that i think will lead him to finish his career but more his inability to recover after games from soreness.

 

[BigBadCam]

Re: Tom Harley.... playing on or finished ?

His mind is there but his body is gone. Harley has been a great servant of the club and I'd rather see him go out with some sort of dignity rather than try and scrap in one more year. RHarvey showed that even the greatest of champions ends up being a liability on his club. I think it'd beneficial to Geelong if Harley retired.

 

[re cat]

Re: Tom Harley.... playing on or finished ?

For those who didn't read the Bomber thread-

Bomber said the plan was never to play at the Dome on Friday. They decided weeks ago that after playing in Sydney, a 6 day break and being at the dome Tom would have the week off. He pulled up great after the Sydney game.

 

[True Blue Cat]

Re: Tom Harley.... playing on or finished ?

For those who didn't read the Bomber thread-

Bomber said the plan was never to play at the Dome on Friday. They decided weeks ago that after playing in Sydney, a 6 day break and being at the dome Tom would have the week off. He pulled up great after the Sydney game.

Yes i did read that and it makes me feel a lot better as to where he is atm. However it doesn't change my opinion. We can't have him missing every 4th or 5th game next year just because he needs the extra time to recover. I am extremely glad it was planned for last week so he will be near 100% for finals (best we could hope for) yet i still don't see him going on past this year.

 

[The Gee Spot]

Re: Tom Harley.... playing on or finished ?

Wait for an announcement during finals or just before GF re Harley retiring!
I think his time has come to an end sadly and I reckon he himself has made up his mind to move on to life after football at Geelong.
I little thought though is that if he is getting married and moving to Sydney to live etc! What are the chances he could pick up a role in the new Western Sydney???//MMMMMMMMM!

 

[CatFan79]

Re: Tom Harley.... playing on or finished ?

I think Tom Harley has been an outstanding person for the club and deserves to go out on his terms.

The club has been outstanding for Harley too. No player should be able to choose when they retire. Ridiculous statement.

I believe an announcement is imminent and would not be surprised if the team is told either leading into the finals or after the 1st final given that worst case scenario after the qualifying final would be that if we lose then we are only one game from the season - and possibly Harley's career being over.

Knowing how he views himself, I'm sure Harley believes he can nurse himself through another season playing 8-12 games or so. But is this best for the club? NO.

What does surprise me though is that most of the speculation is around Harley when I would have thought that Milburn looks older and slower and far less capable of getting to contests that Harley. We need to remember that Harley did not get a pre-season and missed a big chunk of the season .... Milburn does'nt have the same excuse.

What does Milburn need an excuse for? He's certainly not in his prime but has contributed enough to the team this year to warrant his selection.

Harley doesn't need any more excuses, he has been provided threads and threads worth already on this forum.

 

[Whit3y]

Re: Tom Harley.... playing on or finished ?

fin.

 

[Cattery]

Re: Tom Harley.... playing on or finished ?

Knowing how he views himself, I'm sure Harley believes he can nurse himself through another season playing 8-12 games or so. But is this best for the club? NO.

"Knowing" how he views himself?

From that statement I guess you know the bloke quite well personally, so how about a few pearls of wisdom regarding exactly how he "views himself."

 

[Jumping Jack]

Re: Tom Harley.... playing on or finished ?

The club has been outstanding for Harley too. No player should be able to choose when they retire. Ridiculous statement.


Mate you need to relax ..... have you been on the angry pills ? I'll ignore the comment about my statement being ridiculous .... clearly from your post you know Tom Harley very well ..... or think you do.

My comment about going out on 'his terms' related more specifically to the fact that he will know when his time is up and he won't need the club to tell him. He is the last bloke I can think of that would play on in 2010 unless he thought he could make a contribution.

Can't say I agree when it comes to your comment on Milburn .... Harley showed in the Sydney game that he is still capable of reading the play well enough and 'gut running' to get to a contest. He did'nt quite clunk his marks but I don't think he's far off. Milburn on the other hand has struggled to get to contests - if you go back and watch closely - especially the last 4-5 games he's played - you'll see what I mean .... he gets lead to the ball far too often and I reckon like prelim and gf last year will get exposed on bigger grounds in good conditions. Opposition coaches are starting to play through his opponent and he gets caught out too often.

The great thing about footy is that we're all entitled to opinions .... just don't need to suggest that someone's opinion is ridiculous just because it differs from yours !

Balance my friend ...... balance.

 

[kicksome]

Re: Tom Harley.... playing on or finished ?

makes me wonder if he does decide to pull the pin on playing next year when he will announce his retirement? maybe he will announce it during our finals campaign to spur on the troops a little bit

 

[kicksome]

Re: Tom Harley.... playing on or finished ?

makes me wonder if he does decide to pull the pin on playing next year when he will announce his retirement? maybe he will announce it during our finals campaign to spur on the troops a little bit

 

[BigBadCam]

Re: Tom Harley.... playing on or finished ?

makes me wonder if he does decide to pull the pin on playing next year when he will announce his retirement? maybe he will announce it during our finals campaign to spur on the troops a little bit

Things are starting to look up. Harley's retirement will be the spur the players need to recapture form.

 

[Brasil2007]

Re: Tom Harley.... playing on or finished ?

If he wanted to he could probably do a deal like one of the Collingwood boys did (Wakelin?) and play as a back up. But he won't want to, I suspect, nor do I think it would be in anyone's best interests.

 

[TheRealComptroller]

Re: Tom Harley.... playing on or finished ?

Can't say I agree when it comes to your comment on Milburn .... Harley showed in the Sydney game that he is still capable of reading the play well enough and 'gut running' to get to a contest. He did'nt quite clunk his marks but I don't think he's far off. .

I thought he was robbed by the umpires that night. He clearly controlled the ball but for no apparent reason was not paid the mark several times.

FFS he had the ball locked in his hands for a shitload longer than Senior did on top of Gary Pert in 1994.

 

[SriLankanCat]

Re: Tom Harley.... playing on or finished ?

A fantastic servant and yes i would not be surprised if he calls it quits at the end of the year.

I reckon he will defo be involved with the new West Sydney franchise.

 

[Pure_Ownage]

Re: Tom Harley.... playing on or finished ?

Probably got it from the fact hat he and Felicity are getting married at the end of the year, she works in Sydney and they said they won't be living apart. Let's hope they work it out and his body holds up.

Reasonable assumption...the Sydney thing and injuries make it likely.

Hopefully he can go out with another Premiership

 

[FoxC]

Should Harley play on?

There's been a reasonable amount of attention and speculation on Tom's future in the aftermath of the grand final victory.

According to the man himself, the club has left it up to him to decide whether he will retire or continue playing next season.

Andrew Mackie has been quoted today as saying he believed Tom can and should play on.

Many media pundits have predicted that the grand final was his swansong.

Personally as much as I love and respect him, I think Tom should retire on the highest note possible: dual premiership captain. He will forever be remembered as one of the most inspirational leaders who transformed the playing group's culture and led our club to greatness in the modern era. His catchcry "We are Geelong" will forever resonate with us supporters.

The reasons I think he should retire are obvious: his body is shot, he looks old and slow on the field, and his place in the side is better used to blood a young defender like Gillies while Scarlett and Milburn still have a few years left to teach the kids.

I believe this decision will have a bigger impact on our premiership hope in the next few years than it may appear.

 

[leorex]

Re: Should Harley play on?

If we are thinking about beyond 2010
then Harley should retire.
We can train up a young kid while the back line is strong.When it starts to get weak it will be much harder.We can win without Harley in 2010
beyond that we can't win, while arresting the natural decline of the others and training a kid at the same time.
I hope I am clear

 

[Jacky Too]

Re: Should Harley play on?

I believe this decision will have a bigger impact on our premiership hope in the next few years than it may appear.

I reckon you're right. His leadership seems crucial. Would be a shame to see him leave Geelong for somewhere else, in any capacity. I really rate him.

 

[Glassjaw]

Re: Should Harley play on?

Definitely retirement time. We need to get games into Gillies. Harley has been a tremendous leader for the club but I doubt I'd have him in my 22 next year.

It'd be best for him, and the club imo.