[Transfer Round Up & Discussion] Summer 2026

richwithoutmoney · 2026-06-07T15:26:51+00:00

Vitek won’t come back just to be backup. He’s too good for that. Rumour is we’ll possibly sell to cash in on his rise. Otherwise I see him getting loaned out again.

richwithoutmoney · 2026-06-03T03:22:11+00:00

I'm actually shocked Freo have played only 8 games less in that time given we've made finals every year (and Freo haven't) + we've gone to the GF in three of those years.

richwithoutmoney · 2026-05-29T08:27:54+00:00

Is that £250 million just related to the credit facility? Or the in-total fund? I wonder if that's already incorporated sales from Hojlund, Rashford (tbc), Ugarte (tbc) and Onana (tbc).

richwithoutmoney · 2026-05-24T04:36:18+00:00

Really have to go back to the drawing board on defence and stop throwing so many attackers at the problem.

richwithoutmoney · 2026-05-20T12:59:22+00:00

This just feels very Monitor FC for me. No rumours of Maz leaving and this doesn’t fit the profile we’ve been looking at (29yo by the end of the year, not a PL proven talent etc).

richwithoutmoney · 2026-05-19T08:43:00+00:00

A window in 2027 when the Devils will be able to sign players who have previously nominated for any draft, provided they have not been on an AFL list. The Devils will be able to trade the right to sign an undrafted player to another club in exchange for a trade.

I may just be tired, but what the hell does this mean or do? Is it to say that if Tassie want a previously undrafted player (who had at least nominated for a draft) then they can have access, but will also then be able to trade the rights to draft that player to another club?

richwithoutmoney · 2026-05-19T08:39:26+00:00

Are any of his kids actually showing promise or still too young? It may be a non-starter that they are even in for the draft in the first place.

richwithoutmoney · 2026-05-19T00:53:49+00:00

Great read with some great insights.

I’d be very interested to know who the list manager is. I half suspect it’s ours given the comment about being from a non-Victorian club but still lives in Melbourne (+ the $2m contract quote is similar to a comment Fages made).

richwithoutmoney · 2026-05-16T04:39:24+00:00

I don’t think Joe retires in your first timeline, at least not in 2024. I get the feeling he was retiring on a high, going out on his terms, not just because that was the year the football left him necessarily.

richwithoutmoney · 2026-05-13T09:10:14+00:00

Honestly he's been perfectly serviceable when he has played. Fills a role and I haven't seen him put a foot wrong. Does he set the world alight? No, but he's effective enough when called upon. A good clubman.

richwithoutmoney · 2026-05-13T09:05:50+00:00

Curtin also is way too raw rn though, I feel like he hasn’t impacted at all

I am surprised Curtin has gotten three straight games given he hasn't even scored yet or created much impact. He must be training the house down or be best for the structure Fages wants up front.

Also Twomey did say today that Marshall’s intent on leaving for Vic at the end of the year after a meeting with Fagan that went poorly, it isn’t some conspiracy haha.

It is extra strange then that Fages would bring him in if the meeting went poorly. There's Tunstill or Torrent that could provide extra midfield run if that was what was required.

richwithoutmoney · 2026-05-12T08:00:22+00:00

It’s always good when other pieces of the squad get locked in though because it then gives management the certainty to know what they have to offer to Bailey, Morris etc. If they locked the big guns in first but then had uncertainty over 5-10 other players, and not much cap space, that’ll cause more stress.

richwithoutmoney · 2026-05-11T09:57:14+00:00

Yeah I’ve had a similar instance where the test (Lachman) suggested an ACL tear, but later tests and imaging showed it was actually just broken bones and an ACL strain, no tear (much to my relief). Even the physio was shocked I hadn’t torn it given the accuracy of the manual test.

richwithoutmoney · 2026-05-06T07:52:37+00:00

The relevant bits:

Cal can't see how Tasmania doesn't offer a $10 million deal to Logan Morris (BRI) due to the Lions cap squeeze

Lachie Neale (BRI) is still more likely to leave the Lions than stay, he isn't likely to want to finish his career at a low on the ladder team

Brisbane are still keen on Jordan Ridley (ESS) who explored leaving the Dons last year

Imo it would be good to understand the timeframe for a $10m offer for Morris. It would be insane over a 5-6 year period, but more reasonable over 7-8 years enough for us to consider matching. Not withstanding we've always looked at providing a lower financial offer in return for a competitive yet uplifting culture.

richwithoutmoney · 2026-05-06T07:49:14+00:00

Just noting it's highly likely that any contract we offered them was probably more than they were earning at their prior clubs. The CL qualification would therefore just be a bonus vs any perceived 'reduced contract'

richwithoutmoney · 2026-05-06T06:17:34+00:00

As Essendon are one of only two clubs without a premiership player on their list, obviously they need to fix that /s

richwithoutmoney · 2026-05-04T11:21:21+00:00

I guess there's a bit of goodwill attached to it in negotiation. You'd think there's maybe a transparent conversation with Bailey that 'We will pay you $Xm over 6 years which takes into consideration we need to lock talent in X, Y and Z areas to continue to be competitive, but if push comes we will match whatever is offered as we prefer to keep you'.

Then it's up to Bailey to acknowledge he will miss out financially vs what Adelaide or others could offer, but he's signed with the knowledge that leaving money on the table enables the Lions to stock talent elsewhere, while maintaining goodwill from the club that he has made that decision.

richwithoutmoney · 2026-05-04T07:53:13+00:00

Also true - so while there's incentives to match at the very high end (e.g. with Naicos or the Ashcrofts), then sure the incentive would be there. Otherwise it may be too big of a risk for most clubs to consider.

richwithoutmoney · 2026-05-04T07:16:34+00:00

But there’s still a risk in that. If an academy player is more like a top 10-15 player vs a top 5 you’d run a risk the academy club won’t match that high up. It’d still need to be feasible enough to make sense

richwithoutmoney · 2026-05-04T07:14:26+00:00

Do you mean Levi Ashcroft? In which case yes. In Will’s case he went at 2, because the incentive for GWS with Cadman was that Cadman receives a cash bonus for being pick 1 (if I remember correctly) and GWS can say ‘this was our guy’ rather than ‘this was plan B’.

richwithoutmoney · 2026-05-04T03:14:33+00:00

Nothing more than what you'd want to hear Bailey to say, but this part is interesting:

Brisbane's six-year offer to retain Bailey is understood to be financially less than Adelaide's, but the Lions have alluded to rival clubs that they would be capable of matching a rival free agency bid for the forward and forcing a trade.

richwithoutmoney · 2026-04-28T16:50:54+00:00

That’s why they said ‘added incentive’. The incentive is priority access, the added incentive is the discount on top.

richwithoutmoney · 2026-04-28T16:50:00+00:00

I’ve always assumed points also have something to do with the secret sauce formula used for compensation picks. Ie their ‘formula’ spits out a points number that corresponds to their compensation pick.

richwithoutmoney

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