Collingwood’s List Shuffle: The Method Behind the Madness

Here we go again. Collingwood have dropped another round of list changes on us and half the football world is acting like we’ve reinvented the wheel.

We haven’t. We’ve just found a loophole and we’re using it properly.

What Actually Happened

The Pies have delisted a player who was still under contract. Sounds brutal when you write it like that, doesn’t it? Sounds like someone’s copped the arvo tea and the boot in the one sitting.

Except that’s not really the story. This fella is set to be re-listed during the rookie draft. It’s a well worn trick these days and clubs up and down teh competition use it to manage their cap and their list numbers at the same time.

Basically, you delist a contracted player, free up some room, then grab him back as a rookie a bit later for less money against the cap. The player still gets a game of AFL footy in him. The club gets flexibility. Everyone wins, if you ask me.

Carn the Pies for being smart about it instead of just hoping for the best.

Why Clubs Do This

Let’s be honest, the salary cap in this competition is a beast. Every club is fighting for every dollar and every rookie spot they can find.

Collingwood have had a tight squeeze on their list for a couple of years now. Premiership list, ageing bodies, kids coming through, trades to think about. Something has to give somewhere.

This delist-relist manoeuvre lets the club keep a player they still rate without it hurting the total spend as much. It’s not a loophole that’s some dodgy backroom deal either, it’s allowed under the rules and plenty of clubs have done it before us.

• It protects a player the club still believes in
• It frees up cap space for other list needs
• It keeps list numbers balanced heading into the draft
• It gives the player certainty instead of being cut loose completely

You’d rather that than a bloke getting the phone call and being left to find a new home from scratch, wouldn’t you?

The Bigger Picture For Collingwood

This isn’t happening in isolation. The footy department have been busy the last few weeks working through who stays, who goes, and who gets another crack via the rookie list.

Collingwood are coming off a season where the list looked a bit tired in patches. We all saw it. Legs went missing in big moments and don’t tell me that’s just coincidence.

So the exec and the list management crew have had some hard conversations. Nobody loves cutting players, but if it means the list is leaner and better placed for finals footy in years to come, then you do it.

It’s not fun to watch blokes you’ve barracked for get delisted. Never has been. But footy’s a results business and Collingwood supporters more than anyone know that premierships don’t fall into your lap from sentiment.

What It Means Heading Into The Draft

With these changes locked in, Collingwood now head into draft night with a clearer picture of what they need.

Depth through the midfield is always the cry from the outer, isn’t it? Every year someone reckons we need another inside mid and every year we somehow find a way to make do. This year might be different given the ins and outs on the list.

Tall timber down back is another one worth watching. We’ve been linked with a few key position prospects and if the Pies can nab a genuine key defender with upside, that’s a box ticked.

The rookie list spot that’s opened up thanks to this delist-relist move gives the club an extra bit of room to move. That’s valuable when draft night throws up a surprise or two, which it always does.

The Fan Reaction

Look, I’ve seen the forums. I’ve seen the group chats light up the second this news dropped.

Some fans are filthy. They reckon it’s harsh to delist a bloke who’s contracted, full stop, end of story. I get the emotion in that.

But once you explain the mechanics, most reasonable supporters come around. This isn’t a club turning its back on a player. It’s a club using the system to look after him and themselves at the same time.

Would I rather we never had to do this sort of manoeuvring? Sure. Would I rather be swimming in premiership points list spots with no cap pressure whatsoever? Obviously. But that’s not the competition we’re in.

Every contending club juggles this stuff. The ones who do it well stay at the pointy end. The ones who stuff it up spend five years rebuilding and we’ve all watched that happen to other clubs, haven’t we?

Final Word From The Outer

Collingwood’s list changes this week aren’t the drama some are making them out to be.

It’s smart management, plain and simple. A player gets looked after, the cap gets a bit of breathing room, and the club heads into the draft with options.

Is it ideal that we even need tricks like this? Nah, probably not. But this is the AFL in 2024, and if you’re not working every angle you’re falling behind the pack.

I’ll definately be watching draft night closer than usual this year given how much movement there’s been on our list already. Plenty more could happen between now and then too, knowing this footy club.

One thing I am confident about though. Whatever shape the list ends up in, the boys down at Olympic Park know what they’re doing more than the keyboard warriors give them credit for.

Carn the Pies. Draft night can’t come quick enough.