Richmond goalsneak Jack Higgins is the latest in a long line of players seeking a shift to St Kilda. Photo: JOE ARMAO
If a week is a long time in football, then a weekend is an eternity during the trade period.
It was only four days ago that Richmond list manager Blair Hartley announced that fan favourite Jack Higgins had not requested a trade, despite rumours suggesting he had been linked to St Kilda.
“At the moment Jack’s contracted and he’s really important to us going forward, so we’ll just consider that as it is right now,” Hartley told the ABC on Thursday.
But fast forward to Monday and the 2018 Goal of the Year winner has officially declared his intentions of heading to Moorabbin.
Not only is that a nice little coup for the Saints, but it has also strengthened their claim as THE destination club in the AFL. And what an incredible turnaround it’s been for them in 12 short months after a sub-standard decade.
Last year, they enticed Brad Hill, Zak Jones, Dan Butler, Paddy Ryder and Dougal Howard to join them, and this year they’ve already signed up Brad Crouch and Shaun McKernan. Now they hope 21-year-old Higgins will join their growing band of high-profile recruits.
It hasn’t taken long for St Kilda’s “foreign legion” recruiting strategy to bear, either, the club winning its first final in 10 years this season before being eliminated by eventual premier Richmond at the semi-final stage.
You can bet your bottom dollar that new coach Brett Ratten has been the driving force behind the rejuvenated Saints’ status as one of the most attractive clubs to play for in such a short period of time.
Ratten, who served a lengthy apprenticeship under modern coaching great Alastair Clarkson at Hawthorn after his first senior coaching stint at Carlton came to an end, looks to have clearly struck the right balance between good cop and bad cop at St Kilda – and his players love him.
That kind of connection between player and coach is rare in the modern day, but is so necessary if you want to win a flag – just look at how the Richmond players adore their coach Damien Hardwick (who also served under Clarkson). It’s not surprising the Tigers have won three of the last four flags.
Ratten has a strong sense of empathy towards his players and perhaps Higgins sees a lot of Hardwick in the St Kilda coach, making the decision to choose the Saints a simple one for him.
No doubt it would have been hard for Higgins to sit by and miss out on playing in Richmond’s last two flags – once because of brain surgery, and the second one due to not being in the best 22.
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The fact that he was an integral part of the 2018 side that looked to be careering towards a premiership, only to be stopped in its tracks by Collingwood at the second-last hurdle, would have made the pills of 2019 and 2020 even harder for him to swallow.
But he is undoubtedly a talented and skilful player with very good decision-making. He’s capable of kicking multiple goals in a game, and by adding him to a forward line that already features his former Richmond teammate Butler, Tim Membrey and Max King, with Rowan Marshall and Ryder drifting in, the Saints’ potency in attack will only be enhanced.
However, Higgins is contracted, so there is a bit of water to go under the bridge if he wants to switch clubs.
Meanwhile, Greater Western Sydney star forward Jeremy Cameron’s move to Geelong has inched further towards finalisation, after confirmation that the Cats have offered the Giants two first-round picks. The Giants knocked back the offer, but it served as a starting point for negotiations at least.
Elsewhere, Sydney chief executive Tom Harley has told 1116 SEN that the Swans are looking to potentially recruit luckless former St Kilda forward Paddy McCartin – a move which would unite him with his brother Tom.
But the Swans are at risk of losing another key position player in Aliir, who could be headed to Port Adelaide, according to his manager Paul Connors, who cited an unsettled 2020 as a potential reason for his client to leave the harbour city.
“I like him as a marking, rebounding half-back. I know the Swans want to keep him, but we would be open to looking at options, one could be Port Adelaide,” Connors told Trade Radio.
Harley was adamant that the gun defender, who pinch-hit as a ruckman this season, was a required player, though.
And Essendon appears to have secured the services of Gold Coast tall Peter Wright as a replacement key forward for Joe Daniher. The Bombers will part with just a lowly future fourth-round pick for the Suns forward and ruck, who was contracted for two more years at the Gold Coast. Wright was taken at pick eight in the 2014 draft.
There were no trades completed on day six.
COMPLETED DEALS
1. Rory Atkins (Adelaide) joined Gold Coast as an unrestricted free agent. Adelaide received pick 36 as compensation.
2. Isaac Smith (Hawthorn) joined Geelong as an unrestricted free agent. Hawthorn received pick 42 as compensation.
3. Joe Daniher (Essendon) joined Brisbane as a restricted free agent. Essendon received pick 7 as compensation.
4. Zac Williams (GWS) joined Carlton as a restricted free agent. GWS received pick 10 as compensation.
5. Aidan Corr (GWS) joined North Melbourne as a restricted free agent. GWS received pick 30 as compensation.
6. Zac Langdon (GWS) traded to West Coast in exchange for pick 54.
7. Oleg Markov (Richmond) traded to Gold Coast in exchange for future third-round pick.
8. Jesse Hogan (Fremantle) traded to GWS in exchange for pick 54.
9. Brad Crouch (Adelaide) joined St Kilda as a restricted free agent. Adelaide received pick 23 as compensation.
10. Kyle Hartigan (Adelaide) traded to Hawthorn in exchange for future fourth-round pick.
11. Shaun McKernan (Essendon) joined St Kilda as a delisted free agent.
* Pick 43 (Brisbane) and future fourth-round pick (Brisbane) trade to Melbourne in exchange for pick 53 and future third-round pick.
