Was widely reported at the time both Hipwood & Payne took modest deals salary wise, around $600-$650k per year for the security of long term deals. Great value for money really as best 22(23) key position premiership players.
In terms of salary to re-sign Bailey, having lost Daniher, McInerney, Ah Chee and Starcevich in recent years (Worth noting as an RFA Starcevich was in our top 10 highest paid players) plus Neale, Zorko and Lester likely moving on end of next year, we will have the cash to offer Bailey a good deal (We won’t be matching 1.5m a year though if a club like the Bombers offers something akin to that). Even accounting for increases for the Ashcroft brothers, Fletcher, Wilmot, Morris, Lohmann and the recruitment of Allen and Draper, with the players who have left/will be leaving we are in a good spot. We’d be able to throw some money at a good player again if we also lost Bailey.
We seem to strategically front load and back load deals to allow the recruitment/retention seen by the Lions as evident in recruitment of guys like Daniher, Dunkley, Allen and Draper whilst contending and retention of McCluggage, Rayner, Berry ect. like all clubs do but our list management team have been elite in terms of contract management in recent years.
Majority of clubs are doing this successfully in this day and age. Clubs competition wide have come a long way in this regard over the past decade or so.
