Goddard and saints going to Free agency to decide his value

[sunsaint]

I love how when Goddard says something like "I want to stay at St Kilda" some people automatically refer to Ablett and Scully etc. And based on those guys actions, "I want to stay at St Kilda" means he's going.

BUT

If Goddard has decided to remain where he is he'd also be saying something like "I want to stay at St Kilda".

Reality is that none of us know.

no not really its just semantics, a popular game here
"want to stay"
"I am staying"
two very different things

[Moorabbin Man]

It's encouraging, it means he has not made a decision to go yet. On the issue of what he's worth, what's Riewoldt on? It would be reasonable to benchmark Goddard's salary to Riewoldt's. It would be reasonable to argue that he does not consistently perform at the level Riewoldt does. However, you could argue (in fact I think it's a definite) that his performances in Grand Finals have far exceeded Riewoldt's. Therefore, what's he worth? The same as Riewoldt or slightly less?

[Dave McNamara]

I am a huge Goddard fan.

I have been told directly from a reliable source ( no name dropping, but is someone that features prominently on a football discussion show that airs on Monday) that he has been offered $500k by the club, and a rival club has offered $750k.

He is really torn at the moment from what I've been told.

I hope he stays, but $250k pa. what would you do?

If I was Brendan, and assuming relationship/s with the club are still solid... stay and be a one club player.

Is $125K (allowing for the required donation to our government - an example of politics for those who feel unaffected by politics ) really that much when you've been on a footballing income for 10 years???

IMH and poorly informed opinion, $750K is crazily overs. $500K is pushing things and includes a healthy loyalty bonus.

BJ's last two year's form don't justify the money.
His age suggests he's not going to show stellar improvement.
His position which is largely that of a sweeping flanker suggests he is replaceable.
The reports that Hillbilly stars were/are all on $400/450K suggests better bang for buck can be achieved.
If he was to go/be allowed to go, then currency-wise re BJ, for St Kilda it's now or never.

I think that should BJ go it would be win/win. We get a high draft pick for a younger player and salary cap space. He gets to go somewhere like Carlscum or the Purple Puke under the false belief they can win a flag.

If BJ goes, it should be with no animosity, and he should always be welcome back at the club.

That said, if he stays I would be happy with that also, but please Saintas, don't pay overs. We need to reshape our player payments set up to that of the Hillbillies... no over the top salaries, but most players paid above the AFL average to reward and keep them happy... (Source: Brian Cook Hillbilly Grand Poohbah.)

[BigMart]

Ridiculous situation...

Reminder
"Fremantle were able to do in a week, what St Kilda couldn't get done in 8 months"

I'd be gob smacked if he re-signed
Because if he was going to, it would have happened already.... I think both parties are hesitant...

[magnifisaint]

Ridiculous situation...

Reminder
"Fremantle were able to do in a week, what St Kilda couldn't get done in 8 months"

I'd be gob smacked if he re-signed
Because if he was going to, it would have happened already.... I think both parties are hesitant...

irrational post. Fremantle threw ridiculous money at Lyon. if St Kilda were stupid enough to do that they would have got the deal done in a few days only. What planet are you from?

[mbogo]

Goddard is an out and out gun whose disposal and poise is as good as anyones across the AFL.
His departure, if it happens (and I think it will) would/will be an unparalleled friggin' disaster IMO.
Anyone who's caging it differently is featherbedding the bare facts.

1. Or it just means the club has no aspirations in winning the flag for the next 3-5 years
2. Incompetent list manager/ admin?

And if these are truths then it is terribly negative and defensive thinking. It is also the type of decision that has other consequences re- memberships. If our loyal fans see that our club is unable to negotiate to keep our best player (potentially - over the next three years) - then many will lose interest in paying for memberships and attending games - since it is clear we know we are not going to be in the hunt. It sends a very bad message about our motivation and drive. If we lose 4000 members over this type of mismanagement then it may well cost us $400,000 each year - as well as losing Goddard - and having a negative impact on the other players who will know we will just be making up the numbers. IMHO it is like burning a million dollars - over the three years we should be signing him for.
Yet people here say we cannot afford him - well I say we cannot afford to lose him!
Very short-sighted and not very smart business management at all.

[plugger66]

Goddard is an out and out gun whose disposal and poise is as good as anyones across the AFL.
His departure, if it happens (and I think it will) would/will be an unparalleled friggin' disaster IMO.
Anyone who's caging it differently is featherbedding the bare facts.

1. Or it just means the club has no aspirations in winning the flag for the next 3-5 years
2. Incompetent list manager/ admin?

And if these are truths then it is terribly negative and defensive thinking. It is also the type of decision that has other consequences re- memberships. If our loyal fans see that our club is unable to negotiate to keep our best player (potentially - over the next three years) - then many will lose interest in paying for memberships and attending games - since it is clear we know we are not going to be in the hunt. It sends a very bad message about our motivation and drive. If we lose 4000 members over this type of mismanagement then it may well cost us $400,000 each year - as well as losing Goddard - and having a negative impact on the other players who will know we will just be making up the numbers. IMHO it is like burning a million dollars - over the three years we should be signing him for.
Yet people here say we cannot afford him - well I say we cannot afford to lose him!
Very short-sighted and not very smart business management at all.

Do you honestly think we will lose 4K members because BJ left the club. I doubt we would lose 50 because of that. We lost 5K this year because we are on the way down unless it was because Cahill left. I dont think losing BJ will make us fall much further especially if the money saved allows us to get a reasonable FB. had we had one this year we may have won around 4 more games. Keep BJ if he will play for 500k or less. If he wont then lets see what we can get.

[mbogo]

I think Goddard's popularity is huge, Plugger, and should not be underestimated. I also think losing Ross Lyon did not help our membership drive as it made us look weak and disinterested. I always respect your opinion but I am a bit surprised that you do not think he would be a great loss. I admire your optimism about not falling further down the ladder - but I do not share it and sometimes I think you look through Rose-coloured glasses. If we keep the present group together for another year, I actually think we should make the finals next year - but not without BJ.

[plugger66]

I think Goddard's popularity is huge, Plugger, and should not be underestimated. I also think losing Ross Lyon did not help our membership drive as it made us look weak and disinterested. I always respect your opinion but I am a bit surprised that you do not think he would be a great loss. I admire your optimism about not falling further down the ladder - but I do not share it and sometimes I think you look through Rose-coloured glasses. If we keep the present group together for another year, I actually think we should make the finals next year - but not without BJ.

I can honestly say you are the first person who has accused me of looking through rose coloured glasses. Anyway BJ may be popular but not as popular as Lenny and by a long way but when he retires I doubt we would lose anyone. I know that is different but I dont reckon HBF going to another club lose members. matter of fact the only player i can ever really remember having an impact on membership when leaving is Plugger. Hall didnt, Ball didnt and i doubt BJ would. I have said I am happy in keeping BJ but I can honestly say I would rather a reasonable big FB than a running HBF especially with the pay difference.

[mbogo]

Well, what I mean is that you seem to see a rosey future without Goddard, and I am usually optimistic myself - I guess most Saints supporters have to be. Yet if we lose Goddard I just do not see how he could be replaced in the short term - so it will result in an even worse season than this one. On many occasions, even when not playing especially well he is always in lots of contests, knocking the ball on and restricting the opposition. I would be very saddened if we lose him and it will hurt to see him in a non-saints jumper.

[Moorabbin Man]

If it's true that he has been offered $500k by the Club then that's a disgrace and a prospective balls up. He is worth about 10% less than Riewoldt, which is obviously more than $500k. For heaven's sake make him a decent offer and give him the captaincy. With all due respect to Roo (whom I admire and respect immensely), I don't think the captaincy has ever sat well with him. It should always have been Hamil if fit and then Hayes. It's now time for succession, let's not stuff this up!

[Richter]

When I see clubs like Geelong, Hawthorn and Collingwood with all their stars, I wonder how they manage to keep them all given salary cap constraints. Then you think about the biggest stars of the game over the last few years... Ablett, Judd, Brown, Riewoldt, Franklin, Brown, Swan... and you realise that only two of that list are at clubs who are in premiership contention...

It is patently obvious that in the AFL a champion team beats a team of champions... and that you can't have your best players being paid massively more than other clubs and expect to get an even spread of talent throughout your list... players like Pendlebury, Swan, Franklin, Bartel, Chapman, and others are clearly earning less at their current clubs than they could on the open market...

In order to win a flag you need that even spread, so you can't have too uneven a pay structure... we at St Kilda have done that with Rooey over the last few years... but he will go down as in the top 4 St Kilda players ever... With Harvey, Plugger, Stewart...

I love BJ, but he doesn't make it into the top 10 at this stage and he isn't a once-in-a-generation player like Rooey is.

So all up, I applaud the stand the club is making... cap your best players' salaries... sure it risks losing one or two... but the cost of paying overs is that you can't assemble a TEAM good enough to challenge in the future...

BJ has his choice... Stick with his measly $500k, and stick with his mates, be a one club player and potential captain of that club... Or go for the cash and try your luck at getting a flag elsewhere...

I would prefer he stays, but I also applaud the club in sticking to their guns salary wise for the reasons I outlined above. It's a win-win for the Saints. If he stays it's at an affordable price, if he goes we get another 1st round pick in a strong draft and salary cap space.

[remboy]

Well said Richter. As much as I'd love to Goddard stay, it's not worth sacrificing the team over. If he goes let's use our two first round picks and get two quality kids, add them to what we've seen this year and build something for the future.