In today’s AFL briefing:
- Bulldogs coach returns fire, saying the trade speculation from media commentator and former Hawk Jordan Lewis was left field.
- Craig McRae has backed Collingwood’s push for free agents Lachie Neale and Zak Butters but says small forward Bobby Hill is “battling”.
Western Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge has taken a swipe at Hawthorn premiership player and media commentator Jordan Lewis over the future of star ruckman Tim English.
Lewis caused a sensation on Monday night when he declared that he would be surprised if English was still at Whitten Oval next year.
“I think there’s strong word around that the questions are being asked at other clubs, ‘is he gettable?’ and I think he’s gettable,” Lewis said, appearing on On The Couch.
But Beveridge returned fire on Thursday morning, saying the trade speculation came out of left-field from “Old scoop Lewis”.
“He’s come back with a half a scoop of vanilla,” Beveridge said.
“If he’s going to speculate and make statements, you’ve got to give the full scoop. Tim’s contracted until the end of ’29, so a player of his ability and impact, he’s secure here.
“It came out of left field for us, didn’t know where it came from, other than Lewy. I don’t know who he’s talking to, but we’re not sure there’s any accuracy in any of that.”
Beveridge worked with Lewis during his time as an assistant coach at Hawthorn.
The Bulldogs are looking to strengthen their midfield group by recruiting Port Adelaide star Zak Butters next year, but English has shown he is vital to the side’s fortunes this season.
Beveridge said the Bulldogs had done a lot of soul-searching following their 57-point drubbing by Adelaide last week.
He said they needed to improve their ability to score from clearances, starting with Sunday’s clash with St Kilda, who they have smashed by an average of 67 points in their past three outings.
Beveridge said he would continue to work with veteran midfielder Adam Treloar who spent the majority of the third quarter on the bench against the Crows following a long battle with soft-tissue injuries.
“He’s been a bit crook, he’s missed the first couple of days, been a bit ill, but he’ll train,” Beveridge said. “He wants to see out the year, so we’ll work through that and continue to help him find his best.”
McRae backs Neale push
An upbeat Craig McRae has backed Collingwood’s push for free agents Lachie Neale and Zak Butters in a bid to bolster their list as he cautioned against a return date for small forward Bobby Hill.
The Magpies coach said Hill was “battling” and still a long away from playing footy again, even at VFL level, despite the 2023 Norm Smith medallist taking part in a light training session on Thursday morning.
“Let’s be really clear, he’s got a lot going on, and he’s a work in progress, but it’s nice to have him in the building,” McRae said.
“I was chatting with him yesterday, having really deep conversations about this stuff, and regardless of whatever happens in life, there’s a level of love and care, like these young men are in my eyes like my sons.
“I want them to feel like that and be a father figure for him to some degree, and set him up to be a good husband and a good dad, and other parts. There’s a lot of work being done behind the scenes to try and support him.”
Hill has not played at AFL level since round 22 last year after taking time out during the season for personal reasons. The Magpies did not consider him for selection during last year’s finals series.
With Hill unlikely to play this year, McRae welcomed list manager Justin Leppitsch’s pursuit of big-name recruits such as Neale, Butters and Gold Coast forward Ben King (restricted free agent).
“I’ve said openly that we want to be in the market for free agents. There’s a strategic plan around that,” he said.
“We have a list management meeting monthly, and names get brought up, and there’s an excitement, I must admit, certain names get us excited – ‘Whoa, he’d be good in a Collingwood jumper’. As a coach, it’s like Christmas time, you get a new toy, and you get excited for it.
“But there is a reality of getting deals done, which is getting harder and harder.”
When asked if Collingwood would benefit by bringing 33-year-old dual Brownlow medallist Neale into the club next year, McRae said “absolutely”.
“We target players that we think that can make a difference to us, and again, we have a strategy around that, but that’s up to Justin Leppitsch to decide and get those deals done,” he said.
McRae was also asked if talk of big names coming to Collingwood, or this masthead’s report that star midfielder Nick Daicos formed part of a sales pitch to lure Butters, could be a distraction to the players.
“We don’t get caught up in most of it, but I’d be surprised if they didn’t see it,” he said.
“There’s definitely an energy when we bring Dan Houston and Harry Perryman into our environment, the locker room gets excited because we’re here to win.”
McRae said Brayden Maynard (shoulder) was still another week away, Darcy Moore (hamstring) had taken benefit from his US training block but was unsure of a return date for the skipper, and announced that debutant Sam Swadling would “play a bit of midfield and a bit of forward and a bit of everywhere” against Port Adelaide at the MCG on Saturday night.
The Collingwood coach said he was also open to games record holder Scott Pendlebury playing on next year.
“I’m open-minded to most things,” he said. “We’re talking weekly. I talk weekly with Howie [Jeremy Howe], Steele Sidebottom, and Pendles.
“I’m determined to make sure that he exits this building when he wants to, and at the appropriate time. And we ideally build a statue and unveil it when he exits.”
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