Opinion Top 4 sides should not be able to access free agents.

[Jakksynn]

I don’t know about you guys but watching Tom Lynch absolute tear apart a prelim for Richmond doesn’t exactly fill me with good feelings. He abandoned a side on the bottom of the ladder to go to a side coming off winning a premiership and then making a prelim.

Now it’s absolutely nothing against him or against Richmond per se, it’s just how I feel about it. I don’t think in the interests of running a fair and even competition we can have top 4 sides acquiring superstar players from bottom sides for almost nothing. That’s how good sides stay good and bad sides get worse.

How do you feel about it? Do you like the theatre of it? Or are you with me here?

 

[LicoriceAllsorts]

April Fools

 

[Yeti]

Boo Hoo.

Free Agent or traded player if he wanted to go to Richmond he would have gotten there.

He deserves to go wherever he wants after playing for that rabble for 8 years.

 

[MF]

It's not a good look and you wouldn't find my team doing it.

 

[Handsuper47]

lol have a sook

 

[threesixpio]

I agree. Was upset Sydney got Buddy. Put a real dampener on that time in my life

 

[frizzle]

It was great recruiting by the tigers & good list & Salary cap management. Fair play to em.
Free agency has to be open to all IMO.

 

[Dav]

The equalisation we have now is more than enough. s**t clubs stay s**t because of s**t management.

 

[HeavyPop]

Meh, if good sides can organise their cap in a way that they can still sign good players while retaining their current ones, then they should be able to.

 

[brad]

It's not free agency if you're restricting which teams they move to.

 

[Substance]

If a top 4 team has the cap space, then good luck to them. I don't see a problem with it

 

[Rusty Brookes]

I agree. Was upset Sydney got Buddy. Put a real dampener on that time in my life

Agreed. The two premierships without him helped but still..

 

[tommyk72]

I don’t know about you guys but watching Tom Lynch absolute tear apart a prelim for Richmond doesn’t exactly fill me with good feelings. He abandoned a side on the bottom of the ladder to go to a side coming off winning a premiership and then making a prelim.

Now it’s absolutely nothing against him or against Richmond per se, it’s just how I feel about it. I don’t think in the interests of running a fair and even competition we can have top 4 sides acquiring superstar players from bottom sides for almost nothing. That’s how good sides stay good and bad sides get worse.

How do you feel about it? Do you like the theatre of it? Or are you with me here?

Be careful. If you throw your toys too far from your cot you might not be able to find them again.

 

[ShaunWCEFC]

Free Agents going to top 4 teams

2012
Quinten Lynch (COL)
Clinton Young (COL)
Jonathan Simpkin (HAW) *Premiership

2013
Colin Sylvia (FRE)
Lance Franklin (SYD)
Jeremy Laidler (SYD)
Tom Derickx (RIC)

2014
James Frawley (HAW) *Premiership
Jarrad Waite (NM)
Shaun Higgins (NM)

2017
Lachlan Keeffe (GWS)

2018
Tom Lynch (RIC) *Premiership

Top 4 teams haven't really done much in this space anyway. Franklin, Higgins and Lynch are the only big pickups.

 

[Captain_Bender]

If only Port Adelaide got Lynch instead of Dixon

 

[Underarm]

Tom Lynch was too good a player to be wasted at the Suns. He gave 8 years to that club, why shouldn't he be able to move to a club in the window?

 

[blaisee]

I don’t know about you guys but watching Tom Lynch absolute tear apart a prelim for Richmond doesn’t exactly fill me with good feelings. He abandoned a side on the bottom of the ladder to go to a side coming off winning a premiership and then making a prelim.

Now it’s absolutely nothing against him or against Richmond per se, it’s just how I feel about it. I don’t think in the interests of running a fair and even competition we can have top 4 sides acquiring superstar players from bottom sides for almost nothing. That’s how good sides stay good and bad sides get worse.

How do you feel about it? Do you like the theatre of it? Or are you with me here?

SORRY

 

[Kappa]

I don’t know about you guys but watching Tom Lynch absolute tear apart a prelim for Richmond doesn’t exactly fill me with good feelings. He abandoned a side on the bottom of the ladder to go to a side coming off winning a premiership and then making a prelim.

Now it’s absolutely nothing against him or against Richmond per se, it’s just how I feel about it. I don’t think in the interests of running a fair and even competition we can have top 4 sides acquiring superstar players from bottom sides for almost nothing. That’s how good sides stay good and bad sides get worse.

How do you feel about it? Do you like the theatre of it? Or are you with me here?

He's taking up a million dollars of their salary cap, so he doesn't come for nothing at all.

 

[blitzer]

I think its fine personally. For all the carry on, Tom Lynch is probably the first and only player that is a genuine star that left a bottom club to go to a top club using the free agency system. Franklin went from one top club to another. I guess Higgins sort of went from a bottom club to a top club (at the time, though Bulldogs would rise up soon after) but lets be real, no one rated him as a star at the time. He's come on in a big way and been able to get his body right.

Richmond actually did lose a few players to salary cap pressure but to their credit they were able to fill the void, including picking up some good youngsters. So more good management than abusing the system.

Also people make out like Gold Coast really suffered, at least they got a top pick because they were on the bottom. Better compensation than they probably would have got through a trade and far better than would happen if one of the better clubs lost a player of a that calibre. When you look at free agency as a whole - it really hasn't had that big an impact on the AFL. Trading is still far and away the most common way to change clubs.

 

[HairyO]

Free Agents going to top 4 teams

2012
Quinten Lynch (COL)
Clinton Young (COL)
Jonathan Simpkin (HAW) *Premiership

2013
Colin Sylvia (FRE)
Lance Franklin (SYD)
Jeremy Laidler (SYD)
Tom Derickx (RIC)

2014
James Frawley (HAW)
Jarrad Waite (NM)
Shaun Higgins (NM)

2017
Lachlan Keeffe (GWS)

2018
Tom Lynch (RIC)

Top 4 teams haven't really done much in this space anyway. Franklin, Higgins and Lynch are the only big pickups.

Ummmm Frawley ?

 

[Golden_6]

I think the system okay. Tigers obviously did very well with Lynch but it’s not like we’re seeing the same clubs at the top pick up all of the free agents. We’ve had 6 different teams in the grand final in the past 3 seasons (not including this year). I’d say equalisation is working well.

 

[MF]

Ummmm Frawley ?

What's the issue?

 

[HairyO]

What's the issue?

Frawley wasnt included as a "big pickup".

Pretty sure he was a key part of us winning in 2015. He obliterated Kennedy.

 

[Tex9798]

I'm not a fan, it's too heavily weighted in favour of the player.

There needs to be a balance the other way where clubs can trade a player (if they are under contract) to the club that can offer them the best deal.

Good on the tigers for getting him but it didn't sit well with me then and it certainly doesn't now.

Bad look for football, make the rich richer constantly.

 

[Heisenberg_]

I don’t know about you guys but watching Tom Lynch absolute tear apart a prelim for Richmond doesn’t exactly fill me with good feelings. He abandoned a side on the bottom of the ladder to go to a side coming off winning a premiership and then making a prelim.

Now it’s absolutely nothing against him or against Richmond per se, it’s just how I feel about it. I don’t think in the interests of running a fair and even competition we can have top 4 sides acquiring superstar players from bottom sides for almost nothing. That’s how good sides stay good and bad sides get worse.

How do you feel about it? Do you like the theatre of it? Or are you with me here?

It’s not free agency then is it?
You understand what the term means don’t you?