After seeing the impacts of a couple of recruits from the first FA class the AFL has had in a long time, what are your thoughts on free agency for AFL? Do you like it? Should it be expanded? Should it be reduced? Do you hate it? Why? Should be interesting to see what y'all think because the general public hated it originally.
Nah it's shit. Will just develop into an NRLesque open contract season 24/7 and destroy the integrity of the draft for one.
Personally, as someone who is into American sports, I'd love to see it expanded on, but not as far as theirs. Firstly, I kinda like the 8 years restricted FA thing, better than their max of 4-5 I think. But I'd love to see the list expanded a touch and teams have the ability to sign players through the season. I think it'd allow a lot of mature ager a chance to have an AFL career.
there's no point having a draft and an american style free agent system though IMO. I don't like how the NBA do it either.
I've always loved the idea of players being loyal, so anything that changes the landscape of contracts towards players changing clubs is a bad thing in my eyes. There's nothing like the special attachment you get towards players who hang around. Richo, Riccardi, Tuck etc. - they become club legends. Free agency's probably a good thing for the players in terms of their own personal circumstances though.
As gun as seeing VFL kents get the call up mid-season would be, I love the fact that you get a squad for the season and that's what you roll with.
I don't like how they move around so much, but I think it would be nice for say Geelong to sign a ruckman from the VFL now that we're low on ruckmen. Obviously there'd be restrictions and stuff, but I think the game would be much better for it.
Wouldn't like to see FA increased. The way it is now is good to stop things like the Ryan O'Keefe saga happening again. But I'd like to keep most of the best players as one club players, unlike in American sports where they play at 4-5 clubs.
Signing players from other clubs for the following season whilst the current season is still going should never be allowed either.
I just fucking hate how much power contracted players have over their employers tbf. Can demand a trade while contracted and threaten to walk out. Good on West Coast for telling Mitch Brown to gagf.
Yeah, I think that's a unique feature of our game, but with all these mature agers making an impact I feel sorry for those who won't have AFL careers, despite being good enough. Yeah, massive AWTA. Hate that about NRL. You can't really do it in the NBA or NFL though afaik, so I assume that's just their thing? With this though, it's the players life, they should be able to liv it how and where they want. Like I agree from a club stand point, but when I think about the individual I can see why FA is necessary imo. Years ago before the draft players could do this anyway and many were loyal. I think it's embedded enough in AFL culture that being a one club man and being loyal are good attributes to have that players will stay relatively loyal.
Even if you do insist on rewarding failure in the name of "fairness" with your (IMO ridiculous) draft system, it's a whole different level of retarded that you can't pick up uncontracted players throughout the season. It's one thing stopping players moving between clubs when they're already contracted, but it's another thing altogether to tell a club they can't sign someone no-one else wants anyway. What is even the rationale behind that? To me it achieves nothing other than weakening the competition. Is it essentially like that to stop clubs picking up the young blokes who'd be in the following year's draft before the draft comes along or something? Could you not just put a minimum age on the ability to recruit free agents mid-season, essentially saying "well if he's 25 and no-one picked him up during the draft this year, bad luck to all you silly cunts, we're signing him now"?
what's the point in long term contracts then from the club p.o.v.? If a player signs the contract, then if they want to play afl they see it out barring exceptional circumstance. They can't just have the security of a long term contract without the draw back of lack of control. Not fair on the clubs. If a player worries about j/s or homesickness, then stop demanding long term contracts
Agree tbh but nah the rule isn't wrt juniors. They're not eligible to be afl listed until the day of the november draft after they're 18.