Player contract news

[the fuzz]

[BazBoy]

It’s been a good period with Flip and Brayden Maynard signings

Mate just emailed. Be great to get De Goey and Grundy added

[BazBoy]

Hey who feels we are still on the journey we started in 2018

Me me me

[BEAMER09]

[PyreneesPie]

[qldmagpie67]

With pieces falling into place the main focus will remain Grundy
He's the ace in our deck
I doubt anyone on here or any magpie supporter would want to see a Collingwood side going forward not have the name Brodie Grundy in it
It all gets back to the salary cap and how much space we have or can create to keep him
My experience in a different code on handling cap space says it can be done but might take creative solutions

Ok first let me go through the basis any salary cap is structured around
The cap will max out under the current CBA at $13.54 million in 2022.
From 2020 the cap rises from $12.68 million by 2% PA to reach the figure
The average wages will be around $389,000 per player

So with a list minimum of 42 players the juggling is always a issue
Depending on the age of your list or the profile will depend on how much cap room you
Without knowing who gets exactly how much (only have media speculation to go by and that's generally inflated) our cap position is tight

The balancing act all clubs face comes down to a simple principal of paying on performance or potential
Potential is the younger player who in the first season or 2 shows they are up to AFL level and come off rookie deals or a player 3-5 years in to a deal and has taken some time to cement there spot and showing they now belong
Performance is the player who has consistently been a proven performer and acknowledged as a vital part of the clubs future

Given each club generally has around 3-5 players who they view as vital these players would go into the top category of earners on the $750k a season bracket
The next level down would be the good players earning between $500k-$750k
You would expect around 8-12 players to be in this bracket depending on how many are in the top echelon
The remainder would earn $250k -$500k
These are the cattle players every clubs needs to fill list position and give depth
Half of the list would need to fall into this category to balance the cap
Now allowing for veteran allowances and the loyalty factor clubs can generally keep 6-10 players for around $75k-$100k a season less then they might get elsewhere
We've seen in the past couple years mega offers aren't always going to take a player away from there current club where they are happy and settled
This is the key factor in the Grundy negotiations

We don't know how strong the pull to go back to SA is only he knows that
He seems settled and happy at the club and no one could doubt his performances
So we now have to find that happy medium between paying him what he deserves and having enough money to keep our best talent around him to make us a finals contender each season

On the market he will attract offers over $1 million a season that's a given but what discount can we extract to get that figure to where we need it to be

We will have players going off our list this season like Wells Goldie and maybe Varcoe and Reid which will free up some space but some of that money may already be used on the deals for Maynard Adams Crisp etc we've made recently
It may be a case of looking if there's a option to offload a player or 2 who might be in that middle bracket and hoping players like IQ Kelly etc can fill there spots on less money freeing up around $200k plus a season for each we can move on but without affecting the balance of our list
We also have to look at players like JDG who will command more money in his next deal
So do we now
1 - Trade out a player like Elliott (example only not saying he should be traded) to save $250k a season to spend on Grundy
2 - Offer Grundy unders and hope he doesn't get offended
3 - Allow Grundy to leave and look to go to the draft and get some more young talent which would effect our immediate opportunities but may work out in the long run (no guarantees) but it allows you to keep the majority of your list together
4 - Look to trade out a player in our top echelon of earners who has currency in the market place and use that money to pay Grundy and likely JDG in 2022 as well

All these option are possibilities some more than others obviously but it will all come down to what do we think Grundy is worth and how does that impact our ability on still putting players around him capable of keeping us in the finals
Lastly the unknown is the commercial opportunity we can muster for a player of his stature. Again there isn't a set formula on this because some players like the commercial aspect some don't. Some don't mind using there down time to maximise there earnings whilst other like that time to themselves so they would need more cash from the club
This could be the ace in our sleeve in this negotiation. Can we find $200k+ a season outside the cap to close any gap on our offer to a SA clubs offer ?

There isn't a exact science and those who have spoken about the money ball scenario don't understand that money ball doesn't work in the AFL like it would in baseball
The formula used there pits players in basic 1 on 1 contests against another to see there value based on the outcome of that matchup
So it could be a left hand bat v right hand pitcher with some other parrometers thrown in
AFL is a team game and the performance of one player can effect the next player and so on
A bad kick out of defence to a mid has ramifications for both players

The bean counter in me would love to know the exact numbers our players earn to see how we could fit Grundy in long term whilst keeping our best players but

[K]

[Dave The Man]

Can't lose Grundy as we go Backwards very fast

[Ads7]

Thanks QM. Interesting to understand the mechanics of a salary cap.

Does anyone know the rules/information related to the below?
1. How many new players must be brought in per season (national draft, rookie draft etc.) Have a feeling it is at least 2-3 in total?

2. What is base salary for kids drafted? Is it same for those drafted via national or rookie drafts? (E.g IQ vs Appleby)

3. Base salary for players like Tom Wilson, Anton Tohill, Mark Keane. Would this go up next year?

4. Minimum of a salary cap that must be used (i.e. of the total ~12/13mil per year, what percentage band has to be used e.g. 80-100%).

May be wrong but I thought there was a minimum spend per year which raises two questions: (1) why do journos go on about a club having a tight salary cap squeeze if every club has to spend roughly same amount; and (2) what happens to all the money clubs like North don’t end up spending when they don’t land a big fish?

[RudeBoy]

I don't know the answer to your last 2 questions AD7, but my guess would be that clubs can pay players bonuses (over and above their contracts) to ensure that total player payments reach the required amount under AFL rules. But not having to guarantee these amounts in player contracts, allows these 'surpluses' to be used to land a 'big fish' should one become available. Also, I think all clubs only have to spend 95% of their salary cap each year. So 5% of $13 mill is $650,000. That's a big chunk towards landing a 'big fish'.

[qldmagpie67]

[Ads7]

Thanks RB and QM!

Reading some news that Isaac Quaynor will stay with Collingwood until the end of the 2022 season. Looks like he will sign a 2 year extension.

Good news! Has shown good signs already that he belongs at the top level and can take the game on.

https://m.afl.com.au/news/2019-07-26/three-games-two-more-years-pies-extend-emerging-defenders-deal

[BazBoy]

Isaac Quaynor had initial 2 yr deal 2019/20

Just signed two extra yrs. till end 2022

Great news going into battle

[npalm]

Yep, good news.
Hopefully he is a wet weather specialist and celebrates with a BOG performance tonight.

[BazBoy]

Yes young man Collingwood needs you 👊