Dry Rot
24-10-2007, 09:45 AM
Carlton joins the Swans and Pies in this - what about us?
Carlton plunders Irish teen stocks
Caroline Wilson | October 24, 2007
CARLTON has secretly signed four Irish teenagers in a bid to unearth fresh international talent as part of the club's aggressive assault on the top half of the league ladder.
Having already lured the AFL's No. 1 player, Chris Judd, and secured a prized priority draft pick, the Blues have adopted a recruiting system in Ireland akin to the old form-four deals to persuade talented Gaelic footballers to commit to the Blues.
Carlton has also convinced 2007 all-Ireland finalist Michael Shields, 20, to fly to Melbourne next month to spend a pre-season with the Blues with a view to placing him on the senior list.
Carlton football operations manager Steven Icke flew into Dublin last night and was scheduled to meet the four junior Gaelic footballers, offering them $1600 apiece on the condition they choose the Blues should they decide to try to make the grade in AFL football.
AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou, who last week met a delegation from the Gaelic Athletic Association in Paris in a bid to resurrect the international rules series, said he was unaware of the Blues' Irish assault but believed there were no rules to prevent it.
"At the moment the AFL apprenticeship scheme, which can lead to overseas-scholarship players coming into the AFL, does not include Ireland but this is different," Demetriou said.
Carlton is understood to have spoken to four teenagers aged between 16 and 17 from four counties — Galway, Cork, Laois and Armagh. All have been outstanding junior players identified by the Blues' Irish recruiting consultant Gerard Sholle.
Icke and Carlton's new coach Brett Ratten left Italy yesterday following a fact-finding tour of high-profile European club Juventus with Ratten heading home to Melbourne and Icke completing the Irish deal.
The move could cause consternation in Ireland, which two years ago was threatening to call off the international rules series as a result of AFL clubs luring marquee players away from the local competition. However, a sense of inevitability appears to have prevailed over the GAA with Shields the fourth Gaelic footballer heading to AFL pre-season training this year.
Already Brendan Murphy, 18, has committed to the Sydney Swans with teenager Pierce Handley flying to train with Brisbane next month and Collingwood securing Kevin Dyas.
Not only is the international recruiting system another way of securing players outside the draft but the cultural similarities between the two countries, the athletic talent of leading Gaelic footballers and the lack of transfer fees makes the system even more attractive.
Carlton was famous for luring players from around Australia as a VFL club in the early 1980s, securing Craig Bradley, Stephen Kernahan and Peter Motley.
The money that changes hands with the Irish teenagers will be used to assist them in schooling and training.
The Brisbane Lions, meanwhile, look certain to have reached an agreement with the disgruntled Jared Brennan. Brennan, who had shown interest in playing for Essendon, is expected to re-sign on a three-year deal.
http://realfooty.com.au/news/news/carlton-plunders-irish-teen-stocks/2007/10/23/1192941065450.html
Carlton plunders Irish teen stocks
Caroline Wilson | October 24, 2007
CARLTON has secretly signed four Irish teenagers in a bid to unearth fresh international talent as part of the club's aggressive assault on the top half of the league ladder.
Having already lured the AFL's No. 1 player, Chris Judd, and secured a prized priority draft pick, the Blues have adopted a recruiting system in Ireland akin to the old form-four deals to persuade talented Gaelic footballers to commit to the Blues.
Carlton has also convinced 2007 all-Ireland finalist Michael Shields, 20, to fly to Melbourne next month to spend a pre-season with the Blues with a view to placing him on the senior list.
Carlton football operations manager Steven Icke flew into Dublin last night and was scheduled to meet the four junior Gaelic footballers, offering them $1600 apiece on the condition they choose the Blues should they decide to try to make the grade in AFL football.
AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou, who last week met a delegation from the Gaelic Athletic Association in Paris in a bid to resurrect the international rules series, said he was unaware of the Blues' Irish assault but believed there were no rules to prevent it.
"At the moment the AFL apprenticeship scheme, which can lead to overseas-scholarship players coming into the AFL, does not include Ireland but this is different," Demetriou said.
Carlton is understood to have spoken to four teenagers aged between 16 and 17 from four counties — Galway, Cork, Laois and Armagh. All have been outstanding junior players identified by the Blues' Irish recruiting consultant Gerard Sholle.
Icke and Carlton's new coach Brett Ratten left Italy yesterday following a fact-finding tour of high-profile European club Juventus with Ratten heading home to Melbourne and Icke completing the Irish deal.
The move could cause consternation in Ireland, which two years ago was threatening to call off the international rules series as a result of AFL clubs luring marquee players away from the local competition. However, a sense of inevitability appears to have prevailed over the GAA with Shields the fourth Gaelic footballer heading to AFL pre-season training this year.
Already Brendan Murphy, 18, has committed to the Sydney Swans with teenager Pierce Handley flying to train with Brisbane next month and Collingwood securing Kevin Dyas.
Not only is the international recruiting system another way of securing players outside the draft but the cultural similarities between the two countries, the athletic talent of leading Gaelic footballers and the lack of transfer fees makes the system even more attractive.
Carlton was famous for luring players from around Australia as a VFL club in the early 1980s, securing Craig Bradley, Stephen Kernahan and Peter Motley.
The money that changes hands with the Irish teenagers will be used to assist them in schooling and training.
The Brisbane Lions, meanwhile, look certain to have reached an agreement with the disgruntled Jared Brennan. Brennan, who had shown interest in playing for Essendon, is expected to re-sign on a three-year deal.
http://realfooty.com.au/news/news/carlton-plunders-irish-teen-stocks/2007/10/23/1192941065450.html