Dogs put eggs in Giant basket
What started as a trickle ended as a frenzy and peaked with the most remarkable trade ever done in the AFL.
Paddy Ryder's defection from Essendon became a mere postscript to the exchange of Western Bulldogs skipper Ryan Griffen for Greater Western Sydney's Tom Boyd. Boyd, all 200cm, 19 years, nine games and eight goals of him, netted a seven-year, $7 million deal.
At the kennel they might not be able to teach an old dog new tricks but they sold the farm to get a new one in.
Time will best judge this deal. Boyd has the tools to become the best power forward in the AFL.
But there are a lot of eggs in one basket here and the basket is being carried by a yet-to-be proven teenager who is going to be guided by a yet-to-be determined coach.
Time will also tell if this deal works for or against GWS.
They got Griffen, a much- needed marquee midfielder, and pick six as a sweetener for losing Boyd. The Giants now have picks four, six and seven in the draft and the Dogs, desperate to show their members something for the loss of Griffen, will pay $1 million of their former player's contract.
It seems too good to refuse. But there is a flipside.
The Giants have failed in their first major attempt at player retention. Boyd forced their hand by threatening that he would return to Victoria at the end of 2015 when his contract expired.
The addition of Griffen may pave the way for a climb up the ladder. The loss of Boyd may pave the way out of the club for others.
Essendon were caught bluffing, claiming Ryder would not be traded unless Chad Wingard or Ollie Wines came their way. In the end the Bombers blinked and let Ryder go.
Ryder held an ace - the threat of going to the grievance tribunal with the claim that Essendon had breached their contractual obligations to him at the height of the supplements scandal.
Winners and losers this trade period? We can eliminate both WA clubs from that debate because they chose not to play.
West Coast had an early dip at Travis Varcoe but missed out and then sat out.
Fremantle did likewise with James Frawley and then worked behind the scenes to try to elevate their first draft pick above the current 13 but weren't prepared to trade out to get there.
West Coast will attempt to draft and develop their way back into the eight. Fremantle will need good management and some good luck to stay in contention in 2015.
With a big chunk of salary cap room set to open up, expect Freo to be major traders in 2015.
Hawthorn's acquisition of Frawley is ominous. Ryder's move to Port equally so.
Both clubs traded to address weaknesses and got what they wanted. They will start 2015 as the teams to beat.
North Melbourne got Jarrad Waite and Shaun Higgins but both are injury-prone and the Kangaroos would not have banked on the acquisitions costing them Levi Greenwood.
Geelong loaded up on talls with Mitch Clark and Rhys Stanley offering marking support for Tom Hawkins, but they lost Allen Christensen to Brisbane and Varcoe to Collingwood.
Brisbane did well to get Christensen and Collingwood's Dayne Beams. When they inject Daniel Rich and Matthew Leuenberger back into the midfield as well, the Lions will hope to make rapid gains.
Collingwood salvaged Varcoe and Greenwood from the wreckage of losing Beams and Heritier Lumumba.
The trading landscape changed dramatically with a major power shift towards players. Griffen and Boyd walked out of uncompleted contracts, as did Ryder, Adam Cooney and Beams.
With three contracted coaches also frog-marched, right now it seems there hasn't been an AFL contract written than can't be broken.
Given it is unlawful to induce the breaking of contracts, a good lawyer would have a field day in the current climate.
Then again, good lawyers have been having daily field days at Essendon for the past two years.
