Cam McCarthy goes home

[Mofra]

http://www.afl.com.au/news/2016-01-29/homesick-cam-mccarthy-granted-indefinite-leave-by-the-giants

GREATER Western Sydney has granted key forward Cam McCarthy indefinite leave to allow him to return to Western Australia.

The 20-year-old is understood to have informed the Giants on Wednesday he was homesick and wanted time with family.

The Giants have accepted it is in his best interests to take a break from the game although AFL.com.au understands they plan to keep him on the list.

They will also continue to support him throughout the process with Giants CEO Dave Matthews saying the decision to grant the player indefinite leave was made after careful consideration.

"Cam has most recently been struggling to deal with the day-to-day demands of being an AFL footballer and as a result we have agreed that the best course of action is for him to step away from the game," Matthews said.

"Following last year's trade period we agreed to implement a range of measures to ensure Cam was able to spend more time in Western Australia with his family. This included augmenting his training schedule as well as bolstering what was already a comprehensive welfare framework.

"Despite initially making strong progress after returning from the Christmas break it has been apparent that Cam cannot currently meet the demands of being an AFL footballer.

"We will obviously continue to support Cam during this time and assist him in every way possible. His welfare is our priority. We ask that Cam's privacy be respected at this time."

McCarthy sought a trade to Fremantle during last year's trade period but the Giants refused to let him go as he had two years remaining on his contract.

Nice work GWS - will get SFA for him at the end of the year now

[GVGjr]

Re: Cam McCarthy goes home

AFL Footy isn't for every one. Hopefully some time away will assist.

[Bornadog]

Re: Cam McCarthy goes home

Last year he kept saying he was homesick, which I didn't buy. Seems the real reason is just what GVGjr says.

[GVGjr]

Re: Cam McCarthy goes home

Last year he kept saying he was homesick, which I didn't buy. Seems the real reason is just what GVGjr says.

If a Victoria lad wants to go home under the guise of being homesick then they shouldn't be requesting to be traded to just one Victorian club. Give the club you are wanting to leave the best chance to make it happen.
If a lad wants to return to the west then he also shouldn't limit himself to just one side like McCartney did.

I get that Footy isn't the 'be all' for every player and McCartney should take as long as he needs to work out whats important to him.

[Testekill]

Re: Cam McCarthy goes home

I really think that people are a little harsh with Cam McCarthy when they keep on bringing up the contract extension that he signed when he was 18, hadn't been at the Giants for even half a year and hadn't debuted yet.

I can't help but feel that there was some coercion when it came to that contract as the Giants badly needed PR since there were a ton of rumors of players seeing out their initial contracts then requesting a trade.


edit: I'm also not discounting the possibility that he might be suffering from depression, he had a ton of eyes on him this year and he might want to become just another person in WA.

[LostDoggy]

Re: Cam McCarthy goes home

From memory Freo offered 2 high draft picks for McCarthy, but GWS dug their heels in on principal. That's looking a costly decision now.

Whilst clubs need to preserve their right to enforce contracts, trying to force unhappy players to stay rarely works out in the long run - hard to see how trading him for 2 highly rated youngsters who want to be there was a bad deal.

[Testekill]

Re: Cam McCarthy goes home

From memory Freo offered 2 high draft picks for McCarthy, but GWS dug their heels in on principal. That's looking a costly decision now.

Whilst clubs need to preserve their right to enforce contracts, trying to force unhappy players to stay rarely works out in the long run - hard to see how trading him for 2 highly rated youngsters who want to be there was a bad deal.

Not to mention that shit like this has to kill player morale. They used McCarthy as an example and it's goign to backfire horribly.

[GVGjr]

Re: Cam McCarthy goes home

From memory Freo offered 2 high draft picks for McCarthy, but GWS dug their heels in on principal. That's looking a costly decision now.

Whilst clubs need to preserve their right to enforce contracts, trying to force unhappy players to stay rarely works out in the long run - hard to see how trading him for 2 highly rated youngsters who want to be there was a bad deal.

I think it was the right decision by GWS and from memory Freo initially offered a 1st and 2nd round pick but GWS wanted 2 in the first round.
Freo quickly traded one of their picks for Bennell and basically ruled themselves out of the race unless GWS just let him go for one pick.
To me there was more than enough reasons for GWS to hold their ground with the trade request and they even put in a program to support him getting home a bit more frequently.

It will be interesting to see what decision he makes

[LostDoggy]

Re: Cam McCarthy goes home

I think it was the right decision by GWS and from memory Freo initially offered a 1st and 2nd round pick but GWS wanted 2 in the first round.
Freo quickly traded one of their picks for Bennell and basically ruled themselves out of the race unless GWS just let him go for one pick.
To me there was more than enough reasons for GWS to hold their ground with the trade request and they even put in a program to support him getting home a bit more frequently.

It will be interesting to see what decision he makes

I get what you're saying, but the deal could only ever be justifiably knocked back if Sunny turned around and gave reasonable service to GWS. If a valuable player really doesn't want to be there, I'd reckon a club only loses by trying to force him to stay.

From memory, Freo were still prepared to give this year's 2nd pick (ended up being Darcy Tucker) and next year's first. That's a lot to knock back for a player who is only stinking up the club's vibe.

[GVGjr]

Re: Cam McCarthy goes home

I get what you're saying, but the deal could only ever be justifiably knocked back if Sunny turned around and gave reasonable service to GWS. If a valuable player really doesn't want to be there, I'd reckon a club only loses by trying to force him to stay.

From memory, Freo were still prepared to give this year's 2nd pick (ended up being Darcy Tucker) and next year's first. That's a lot to knock back for a player who is only stinking up the club's vibe.

It can also work the other way, Gilbee wanted to go and when Eade arrived at the club he said he was a required player and would only trade him if a club was prepared to pay overs. Thankfully no club did.

McCartney only want to go to Freo ruling West Coast out of the mix.

McCartney made his trade request once he returned home catching GWS by surprise and they had every right to question his true motives when they became aware that Freo were offering bigger dollars than his revised deal at GWS.

I understand the point you are making but I think GWS made the right call at the time. They might lose out on it but there are just too many players in the AFL breaking contracts under the guise of being home sick but demanding one club specific destinations.

[LostDoggy]

Re: Cam McCarthy goes home

It can also work the other way, Gilbee wanted to go and when Eade arrived at the club he said he was a required player and would only trade him if a club was prepared to pay overs. Thankfully no club did.

McCartney only want to go to Freo ruling West Coast out of the mix.

McCartney made his trade request once he returned home catching GWS by surprise and they had every right to question his true motives when they became aware that Freo were offering bigger dollars than his revised deal at GWS.

I understand the point you are making but I think GWS made the right call at the time. They might lose out on it but there are just too many players in the AFL breaking contracts under the guise of being home sick but demanding one club specific destinations.

Fair enough. I do get GWS' need to make a stand given they'd already lost a stack of young talent. Sucks for them that it appears to have blown up in their face, but it's easy to be critical with the benefit of hindsight.

[Bornadog]

Re: Cam McCarthy goes home

Fair enough. I do get GWS' need to make a stand given they'd already lost a stack of young talent. Sucks for them that it appears to have blown up in their face, but it's easy to be critical with the benefit of hindsight.

Maybe GWS figured they would take the hit on this one and others may not try the same trick.

[GVGjr]

Re: Cam McCarthy goes home

Maybe GWS figured they would take the hit on this one and others may not try the same trick.

But they also put in a plan to get McCartney home more frequently. The point I'm making is that it just wasn't a hard and fast stance by a belligerent club, GWS did acknowledge his request and put in place some steps to assist him.
I think GWS can look into the mirror here and say they did what was more than reasonable.

If he doesn't have it in him to commit to the club or life as an AFL player they might even have done him a favour.
He could quickly change his mind and want back into the club as well.

[LostDoggy]

Re: Cam McCarthy goes home

That's right. It's a more nuanced discussion than saying GWS were right or wrong. They seemingly made the calls they made under the belief that McCarthy's needs were manageable and that he could ultimately make a significant contribution to the club.

At this stage, with the benefit of hindsight, to me that call is not looking a good one, however it's not too late for him to change his mind again.

[LostDoggy]

Re: Cam McCarthy goes home

GWS have brought this on themselves by recruiting such a massive amount of kids. Draft picks and their hefty salary cap should've been used to lure talent from other clubs.

Both Gold Coast and GWS went with the lets just stock up on kids and create a dynasty in 5-6 years time. Little did they know they would turn into a day-care centre whilst other clubs pounce when they are ready to blossom.