Contract negotiations have broken down: Oscar Allen
Justin Chadwick |
Oscar Allen’s move to Brisbane appears a near certainty, with the West Coast co-captain declaring contract negotiations with the Eagles have “broken down”.
But West Coast coach Andrew McQualter was bullish when talking about the future of Liam Ryan, saying the premiership forward will be at the club next year.
Allen’s future has been a hot talking point ever since it was revealed the restricted free agent met with Hawthorn coach Sam Mitchell earlier this year.
While the Hawks were initially right in the running, it seems Brisbane are now in the ultimate box seat, with their offer to Allen far outweighing that of West Coast.
Allen fuelled speculation of his departure on Thursday morning when quizzed about his future.
“Clearly I haven’t signed a contract with the club. Negotiations have kind of broken down to a certain extent,” Allen told Mix 94.5.
“I’m in the same boat as everyone else. People think I’m lying to them when I say I’m not sure what’s going on.
“We’re genuinely still trying to figure things out. That’s where it sits now.”
Just hours later, McQualter said Allen was a “required player”, but he remains unsure whether he will be able to keep the 26-year-old.
“We’ve been in constant dialogue with Oscar and his management all year, so we’re still working through it,” McQualter said.
“He’s a restricted free agent. We understand the position of where that lies within the industry, but we see Oscar as a required player.
“I haven’t heard the comments, so I probably can’t speak exactly to them, but as I said, we’ve got a list management team. We’re in constant dialogue, and we’ll work through that.”
If Allen leaves, West Coast are set to receive band one compensation – which would equate to pick No.2.
It’s left many pundits viewing the situation as a win-win, with Allen able to revive his career at a premiership contender in Brisbane, and West Coast receiving a highly-valued pick that will help turbo-charge their rebuild.
It’s a win-win position the Eagles can never admit to publicly, and McQualter was quick to play a straight bat.
“Yeah, I’m not going to speculate,” McQualter said.
“As I said, Oscar’s a required player at our football club. We’re working closely with his management and we’re hopeful he’ll be here for many years to come.”
McQualter was more confident when speaking about the future of Ryan, who is contracted for next year but is being sounded out by several Victorian clubs.
St Kilda are reportedly front of the queue for Ryan’s services.
“Liam’s a contracted player. He’s an important player for us,” McQualter said.
“If you read every article about player movement at this time of the year, there’s 500 players changing clubs, which we know doesn’t end up happening like that.
“There’s always good players like Liam. They attract interest from other clubs, which we understand.
“Liam will be with us next year.”
West Coast (1-21) will finish their wooden spoon campaign on Saturday night when they host Sydney (11-11) at Optus Stadium.
AAP
