Israel Folau to GWS

[David]

Watching a live nes conference at the moment about Israel Folau signing with the AFL's 18th team, GWS.

[Larx36]

More than likely another huge waste of AFL cash. Why would you pay top dollar for guys with an unproven football record? Good luck to Hunt & Folau but I personally think it's madness.

[David]

Madness, with a touch of method.

A lot of the money spent is on the advertising/marketing side of things, with those two players geared to bring in a lot more interest to the game and new teams than relocated current AFL stars.

Folau hasn't even played ONE game of Australian Rules Footaball (I refuse to call the game "AFL") so this is extremely risky but personally, I think it adds a lot more interest to the new clubs.

The coach of Folau's League club has come out supporting him and all the correct speak.. and intimated that the deal could be $6M over 4 years.

Not bad dimensions either - 21 years old and 195cm, 103kg.

There are a lot of players running around who took the the game late from other sports... Tippett was a basketballer, Daniel Merritt played Rugby, O'hAilpin played Hurling in Ireland (didn't even play Gaelic), Jim Stynes came over and won a Brownlow medal... so I have no doubt that a 21 year old built like the proverbial outhouse, who has represented his country 7 times before his 21st birthday and is as fit as you can get will definitely create an interesting cereer to watch.

[Bacon]

But what happens when he goes off to become a missionary? Or is he doing that after this year?

[bennymacca]

*accidentally edited instead of quoting

i was saying about how its all about the marketing

[rcon]

football talent has nothing to do with the signings, its all about drawing attention to AFL in new markets.

[bennymacca]

football talent has nothing to do with the signings, its all about drawing attention to AFL in new markets.

yep. but hunt and folau are supreme athletes, and very skillful. these attributes will easily transfer to afl, and there are coaches that can teach them the rest.

i fully expect them to become regular members of their respective afl teams on their own right, they wont be gifted games.

they will be trying extra hard to prove to themselves that they can play the game too - be hugely embarrassing if they didn't get a game.

[David]

Yep I know there are others, I was just thinking off the top of my head

There's a good 15 players who have come from Rugby currently playing, and many others from basketball etc.

[Larx36]

Yeah no doubt there is method in their madness and I can see where they are coming from in that sense but is it really going to be worth it? I guess we will have to wait and see.

Being the new team in town they are going to get a carp load of exposure etc anyways.

Those other players you talk of did come from other sports but they didn't get the crazy pay packet that these guys are getting.

[bennymacca]

how much in marketing will they spent in sydney and gold coast over the next 4 years?

hunt and folau's pay packets would be less than 5% i would guess, and in terms of value for marketing dollar, it would be worth much much much more