AFL chief executive officer Gillon McLachlan has weighed in on the GIANTS’ NAB AFL Trade Period, saying he believes the club will be competitive again next season as they strive for a fourth-consecutive AFL finals appearance.
The GIANTS traded second-year player Will Setterfield to Carlton for pick 43 and a future second-round pick on Friday, and reached an agreement with Hawthorn on Tuesday to exchange injured wingman Tom Scully for a future fourth-round pick (on-traded from Gold Coast Suns).
A few more GIANTS players have been linked to potential trades on the final day of the 2018 trade period.
While some commentators have expressed worries about the quality of players who could leave the GIANTS, McLachlan said he was not concerned about the situation.
“I think it’s a reflection of the amount of talent they’ve had,” he said on NAB AFL Trade Radio’s Trade Mornings on Wednesday.
“Their best team next year is still as talented as any in the league – that’s how the salary cap works. That’s how it played out.
“All the other clubs were worried about a Super Team that would win five premierships in a row.
“The way the system works is that the salary cap brings that talent into a more normalised number. They’ve got an incredibly talented team and they’ll look to win the flag next year and I know they’ll be very competitive.”
Trade Mornings co-host Sam McClure raised a concern that the GIANTS, and fellow expansion club Gold Coast, had a problem holding on to talent.
But in response to McClure saying history suggests the GIANTS lose “a lot more players than other clubs do”, McLachlan was quick to counter.
“That’s not true,” the league CEO said. “Their history is that the vast majority (of those players) have left because of salary cap issues and they’re managing their list.
“They have not had a talent retention problem to my knowledge, and I have some level of insight into that. They’ve had to lose players because of (the) salary cap.”
GIANTS CEO Dave Matthews, speaking on SEN Breakfast this morning, responded to comments that the trades and potential trades suggested the GIANTS had mismanaged their salary cap, saying that wasn't the case and that the AFL needed to provide more support to its newer clubs.
"I see it as a responsible approach," he said. "There's no mismanagement here, it's the consequence of being forced to crunch what is a very strong list into a smaller cap than what was anticipated.
"Victorian media, or Victorian clubs, take some delight in seeing players come home from Gold Coast or the GIANTS, but ultimately it defeats the purpose of the AFL's investment to try and set up a competition that's well represented in New South Wales and Queensland."
The NAB AFL Trade Period concludes at 8.30pm on Wednesday, October 17.
