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  1. #1
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    The Roar - The Bulldog bond can keep Beveridge’s pups together

    The Bulldog bond can keep Beveridge’s pups together
    By Maddy Friend
    LINK

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    The Bulldogs have 20 players coming out of contract at the end of 2017, including Johannissen, Smith, Roberts, Dunkley, Kieran Collins, Marcus Adams and Mitch Honeychurch.
    Johannissen and the club reportedly remain some way apart in contract negotiations, with his Norm Smith-winning feats seemingly enhancing his monetary worth, in his management’s eyes.

    Media speculation suggests he could command around $600,000-700,000 per season at another club. The Bulldogs face the task of evaluating, on the basis of their list profile, whether paying Johannissen that much would be a sensible investment, given it could mean losing another player.
    The strong culture and support of the coaching staff will make the Bulldogs a ‘destination’ club over the next few years. Expect their players to follow the examples of Hawthorn and Geelong, accepting lesser remuneration for the chance of scaling the premiership mountain once again.
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    The start of each AFL season invariably brings with it the annual merry-go-round of contract speculation.

    We see it every year – out-of-contract players announce early in the season that they are putting off contract talks until the end of the season in order to ‘concentrate on their football’ (more accurately, leverage the best deal they can for themselves come contract time).

    This invariably fuels the speculative fires of AFL commentators and puts clubs under pressure to retain their players.

    Each year, one club seems to be more affected by this contract rollercoaster than others. Last year, Gold Coast had to deal with speculation over Jaeger O’Meara’s future until the closing moments of the trade period, when he made his way to Hawthorn.

    Melbourne experienced the same thing several years ago with James Frawley, while Adelaide is arguably the biggest victim of this in recent times, spending a year fending off questions about Patrick Dangerfield’s future before his move to Geelong.

    This year, the team that looks to be most impacted is the Western Bulldogs. With the manager of last year’s Norm Smith medallist, Jason Johannissen, announcing recently that he would defer contract talks until the end of the season, much to the perplexity of his coach, the Bulldogs enter an interesting phase in their list management cycle.



    Simon Dalrymple and his recruiting staff have made the Bulldogs arguably the best-performed team at the draft and trade table in recent times, assembling a talented, hard-working, deep list.

    However, getting the players in the door is only half a club’s work, and some might argue even the easiest part. The second and harder part is retaining players.

    So often, clubs put the initial time and effort into developing a player after drafting them, only to have them leave after a few years, either for more money or greater opportunity.

    The Bulldogs’ flag win last season was a triumph against the odds. Most teams with the number of injuries they had would have limped meekly out of the first round of finals.

    Their replacements, far from wilting under pressure, fitted seamlessly into the team, highlighting the list’s amazing depth.

    Players like Zaine Cordy, Josh Dunkley, Toby McLean, Fletcher Roberts, Clay Smith and Joel Hamling were called into the team and didn’t miss a beat.

    In many other teams, they would have been merely bit-part players in any of their side’s victories, but in the Bulldogs’ case, all played a role in securing the flag victory.

    The upside of this, of course, is the Dogs have unearthed a freakish depth of talent to their list. With this, however, comes salary and retention challenges.

    Having played an integral role in the premiership triumph, these less experienced players have increased their value and would be within their rights to seek more lucrative contracts next time around.

    The Bulldogs have 20 players coming out of contract at the end of 2017, including Johannissen, Smith, Roberts, Dunkley, Kieran Collins, Marcus Adams and Mitch Honeychurch.

    All are talented players, in either the early or prime stage of their careers. Given their potential, most could both earn more and be guaranteed more game time at other clubs, and it will be fascinating to see how club and management evaluate their worth come contract time.

    Johannissen has started the season as he left off last year – in excellent form. He’s also showed his versatility, sneaking forward in the first two rounds to chip in on the scoreboard.

    Johannissen and the club reportedly remain some way apart in contract negotiations, with his Norm Smith-winning feats seemingly enhancing his monetary worth, in his management’s eyes.

    Media speculation suggests he could command around $600,000-700,000 per season at another club. The Bulldogs face the task of evaluating, on the basis of their list profile, whether paying Johannissen that much would be a sensible investment, given it could mean losing another player.

    As a Norm Smith medallist, he is clearly a talented and influential player, but with the Bulldogs’ depth in defensive fifty, and the flexibility of all their players, would his departure leave a gaping hole?

    Clay Smith, in particular, is an interesting case. His has been an injury-ravaged career, with three knee reconstructions limiting him to 47 games in six seasons.

    He had a superb season last year, and had a huge impact in the grand final, but has found himself out of the team for the first two rounds this year.

    Whether this is due to poor form or depth is unclear. However, if Smith finds himself unable to break into the team it could make a decision on his net worth difficult.



    Out of the players named above, Honeychurch seems the most likely to try his luck elsewhere, having found his potential role in the team taken by Caleb Daniel.

    However, as we’ve seen with the champion Hawthorn and Geelong teams of the past decade, creating a winning culture, a tight-knit on and off-field bond between players, and having coaches who are respected and get the best from their charges make football clubs extremely attractive places to be.

    Former Geelong coach Mark Thompson has spoken publicly about how champion Geelong players sacrificed six-figure pay increases to remain at the club and pursue more premiership success.

    In recent years, both Ryan Schoenmakers and Brendan Whitecross from Hawthorn rebuffed trade offers from other clubs, despite not being guaranteed a spot in Hawthorn’s best 22.

    Schoenmakers, in particular, made it known that he was desperate to stay at Hawthorn, and was prepared to fight for a spot in the team.

    The Bulldogs have all three of these things in spades, and that factor alone may outweigh any contractual values.

    Some have already stated their desire to stay, with midfielder Lin Jong turning his back on offers from rival clubs at the end of last year, citing his happiness at the Bulldogs and desire to remain a part of that culture as his motivation, and has clearly benefitted, with strong showings in the first two rounds suggesting he will be hard to dislodge from the team this season.

    Despite struggling with homesickness last year, Adams has also stated his strong desire to stay at the Bulldogs, with the culture a major factor in that.

    The strong culture and support of the coaching staff will make the Bulldogs a ‘destination’ club over the next few years. Expect their players to follow the examples of Hawthorn and Geelong, accepting lesser remuneration for the chance of scaling the premiership mountain once again.
    It always seems impossible until it's done. Nelson Mandela

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  3. #2
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    Re: The Roar - The Bulldog bond can keep Beveridge’s pups together

    I really enjoyed reading that but I wonder if we really are a destination club?
    I don't dismiss that we are a great club for our players but I still feel the players outside of ours haven't realised that yet.
    Perhaps it just needs more time.
    Western Bulldogs Football Club "Where it's cool to drool"

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    Re: The Roar - The Bulldog bond can keep Beveridge’s pups together

    Quote Originally Posted by GVGjr View Post
    I really enjoyed reading that but I wonder if we really are a destination club?
    I don't dismiss that we are a great club for our players but I still feel the players outside of ours haven't realised that yet.
    Perhaps it just needs more time.
    Remembering a great quote from the film The Natural-
    "If you bulid it they will come."

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    Re: The Roar - The Bulldog bond can keep Beveridge’s pups together

    Quote Originally Posted by redders70 View Post
    Remembering a great quote from the film The Natural-
    "If you bulid it they will come."
    Field of Dreams not The Natural
    Western Bulldogs Football Club "Where it's cool to drool"

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    Re: The Roar - The Bulldog bond can keep Beveridge’s pups together

    The quote's wrong anyway.
    Nobody's looking for a puppeteer in today's wintry economic climate.

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    Re: The Roar - The Bulldog bond can keep Beveridge’s pups together

    Quote Originally Posted by GVGjr View Post
    Field of Dreams not The Natural
    The Natural is with Robert Redford when he first starts out as a pitcher has a really short career then comes back as a slugger years later with his homemade bat isn't it?
    Have you been reading those Roddy Doyle books again, Dougal!?


    I have, yeah Ted, you big gobshite

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    Re: The Roar - The Bulldog bond can keep Beveridge’s pups together

    At the end of the day, we need to keep our key players, but for sustained success, I think we need to keep Bevo & Dalrymple even more. Pay them whatever they want, keep the talent coming through the list and the culture right, and we'll be on our way to sustained success. At the end of the day, we will lose players. Hawks lost Buddy (and Suckling), Crows lost Danger, Geelong lost Ablett, but if you can keep nailing picks in the 20s-40s and get decent players out of them, you'll be fine. We just can't do what Hawthorn did and trade away future picks. They've put their future in the hands of Mitchell & O'Meara. I think that's a risky move.

  9. #8
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    Re: The Roar - The Bulldog bond can keep Beveridge’s pups together

    Quote Originally Posted by GVGjr View Post
    I really enjoyed reading that but I wonder if we really are a destination club?
    I don't dismiss that we are a great club for our players but I still feel the players outside of ours haven't realised that yet.
    Perhaps it just needs more time.
    I think you are right but I'd hope over the next few years we'll be a destination club. Our success will drive this.

    Looking back the past few years, where we have missed out on players (or never in contention) because they have all nominated other clubs as preferred choices (Treloar to Collingwood, Danger to Geelong, Frawley, JOM, T Mitchell to Hawthorn, Dion to Richmond ...). Even the second tier players are nominating other clubs as their choices (Bruce & Steele to St.Kilda, Levi Greenwood to North, Jono O'Rourke to Hawthorn, Kristian Jaksch to Carlton ...)


    In the pro, we only had Suckling (more because of the connection with Bevo) and Cloke (in his twilight year) wanting to come to us. We also got the signature of Tom Boyd

    Hurley turned his back to us and re-committed to Essendon did help the cause. The same could also be said for the fringe players (Hrovat, Steven, Hamling) leaving us to look for better opportunity or going home as reason. Former captain work away from the club did raise a lot of eye-browses.

    Next year could be big for us if we can get some big name players linking to us. Fyfe and Kelly are the one I would like to see some noises and be linked with our club.

    Bottom-line, we are not there yet but it's just a matter of time and ... 'we WILL be a destination club'.
    It always seems impossible until it's done. Nelson Mandela

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    Re: The Roar - The Bulldog bond can keep Beveridge’s pups together

    Quote Originally Posted by choconmientay View Post
    I think you are right but I'd hope over the next few years we'll be a destination club. Our success will drive this.

    Looking back the past few years, where we have missed out on players (or never in contention) because they have all nominated other clubs as preferred choices (Treloar to Collingwood, Danger to Geelong, Frawley, JOM, T Mitchell to Hawthorn, Dion to Richmond ...). Even the second tier players are nominating other clubs as their choices (Bruce & Steele to St.Kilda, Levi Greenwood to North, Jono O'Rourke to Hawthorn, Kristian Jaksch to Carlton ...)


    In the pro, we only had Suckling (more because of the connection with Bevo) and Cloke (in his twilight year) wanting to come to us. We also got the signature of Tom Boyd

    Hurley turned his back to us and re-committed to Essendon did help the cause. The same could also be said for the fringe players (Hrovat, Steven, Hamling) leaving us to look for better opportunity or going home as reason. Former captain work away from the club did raise a lot of eye-browses.

    Next year could be big for us if we can get some big name players linking to us. Fyfe and Kelly are the one I would like to see some noises and be linked with our club.

    Bottom-line, we are not there yet but it's just a matter of time and ... 'we WILL be a destination club'.
    From North I think. To Collingwood.
    Have you been reading those Roddy Doyle books again, Dougal!?


    I have, yeah Ted, you big gobshite

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    Re: The Roar - The Bulldog bond can keep Beveridge’s pups together

    Quote Originally Posted by Twodogs View Post
    From North I think. To Collingwood.
    Sorry, that's correct, I remembered some discussion where we may have had some interest in him but he wanted to go to 'the Filth' instead.
    It always seems impossible until it's done. Nelson Mandela

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    Re: The Roar - The Bulldog bond can keep Beveridge’s pups together

    I read an interesting article by an analyst that consults with sporting teams & his belief that connection and team harmony is the key to success in an age when teams all try the Moneyball approach of finding hidden gems based on statistical output.

    I think Bevo's greatest skill is his ability to bring the club & playing group together and have them marching in sync. It's an art to be able to manage so many personalities in a high pressure, win at all costs environment.
    Our 1954 premiership players are our heroes, and it has to be said that Charlie was their hero.

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    Re: The Roar - The Bulldog bond can keep Beveridge’s pups together

    Quote Originally Posted by comrade View Post
    I read an interesting article by an analyst that consults with sporting teams & his belief that connection and team harmony is the key to success in an age when teams all try the Moneyball approach of finding hidden gems based on statistical output.

    I think Bevo's greatest skill is his ability to bring the club & playing group together and have them marching in sync. It's an art to be able to manage so many personalities in a high pressure, win at all costs environment.
    This is a good point and it might also explain the under performance of teams like Collingwood and particularly Fremantle, where connection and team harmony do not appear as a strength of the respective coaches. Gold Coast also seem to fit in that box.
    Life is to be Enjoyed not Endured

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    Re: The Roar - The Bulldog bond can keep Beveridge’s pups together

    Quote Originally Posted by GVGjr View Post
    Field of Dreams not The Natural

    Damn,i knew it was some baseball film.

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