Raines inks new Lions deal

Lions midfielder Andrew Raines has re-signed. Picture: Ryan Pierse Source: Getty Images

BRISBANE midfielder Andrew Raines has re-signed with the Lions for another two years.

Raines, 26, has re-invented himself as a tagger since heading north at the end of 2009 when he parted ways with Richmond.

Having established himself as one of the AFL's better defensive midfielders, Raines is looking forward to brighter times at the Gabba.

"I'm a Queensland boy and I love playing up here in Brisbane – we have a terrific footy club and it's one that I'm very proud to be a part of," he said.

"I'm extremely excited about the talent in amongst the group – we've improved so much over the last 12 months, and now we know we have to just put our heads down and continue to work hard, and the good results will come.''

Brisbane football manager Dean Warren said Raines had reaped what he had sowed.

"'Rainesy' really took his game to a new level in 2012, and that was the result of a lot of hard work, dedication, and attention to detail," Warren said.

"He sets a fantastic example to our younger players of just what it takes to be a professional AFL player, and we are delighted to see him re-sign."

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Power stops chase for Broughton

Fremantle's Greg Broughton gets a desperate handball away under pressure from Hawthorn's Lance Franklin. Picture: Daniel Wilkins. Source: PerthNow

PORT ADELAIDE is retreating from the chase for Fremantle's switch-hitting defender Greg Broughton.

The Power is being turned off by the heavy cash demand on the final year of Broughton's contract that comes with his trade from the Dockers.

Also, Port is not eager to meet 26-year-old Broughton's demands for a long-term deal.

Meanwhile, Port's talks to trade 20-year-old defender Ben Jacobs to North Melbourne have not progressed today.

The Power is insisting on draft picks from the Kangaroos rather than players such as small forward Matt Campbell and defender Luke Delaney.

North Melbourne currently has picks No. 15, 38 and 39 in the first round of next month's national draft.

"The clock is ticking," said Port football operations manager Peter Rodhe today.

The Power has until 1.30pm Friday to trade Jacobs or run the risk of losing the Victorian draftee without compensation in next month's draft where he would be claimed by any of the Kangaroos, Essendon and St Kilda and possibly Richmond.

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Batsanis back with Borough

Nathan Batsanis is set to rejoin the Borough. Picture: Michael Klein Source: Herald Sun

PORT Melbourne has regained its pacy and classy 2011 premiership wingman Nathan Batsanis.

The 24-year-old is returning to Melbourne after a successful season with Norwood in the SANFL.|

Batsanis figured in the Redlegs' flag and finished fourth in the Magarey Medal after going in as favourite.

With his speed and long kicking, the right-footer was an integral part of Port's perfect 2011.

"Just missed home too much, family and friends,'' Batsanis said this afternoon.

"Need to be back in Melbourne, where I belong.

"That's it, really. It was a good experience and stuff like that over there but I missed home and missed Port Melbourne too much.

"Ten of my best mates are from Port Melbourne. It was pretty hard to leave in the first place but a few AFL clubs said to me if I wanted to get another crack I should go over there and see what happens.

"But if nothing happened I was always going back to Port. It's my home. No other place I'd want to be.''

Port had to wrangle a transfer fee with Norwood since he was on a two-year deal.

Batsanis said he improved as a player in the SANFL and was determined to have a good comeback season for the Borough.

Port has also secured well-regarded Caulfield Grammarians midfielder Tom O'Sullivan, the son of Carlton official Shane.

O'Sullivan won the best-and-fairest this year.

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Saints set to land Hickey

Gold Coast's Tom Hickey is heading to the Saints. Picture: David Clark Source: Gold Coast Bulletin

BREAKING: ST KILDA has landed the ruckman it desperately craved with Tom Hickey on the move from Gold Coast in exchange for pick 13.

The Saints and Suns will also swap later picks to seal the deal, while the official paperwork could be lodged with the AFL tomorrow.

SuperFooty believes the Saints will receive picks 26, 47 and Hickey. In return, the Suns will get the prized pick of 13 as well as 37 and 57.

The Suns tonight confirmed SuperFooty's report.

Hickey boasts enormous upside after an impressive end to 2012 and is poised to lend Ben McEvoy a big hand in sharing ruck duties at Seaford next season.

Hickey, 21, requested a trade to the Saints this month to move closer to his girlfriend but talks stalled last week when the Suns played hard ball, demanding a first-round pick as market interest increased.

The 201cm big man was a zone selection to Gold Coast.

The Saints traded their first pick, No. 12, to GWS in a deal which saw Claremont power forward Tom Lee head to St Kilda.

But Scott Watters' side was gifted pick 13 on Friday from the AFL as compensation for losing Brendon Goddard to Essendon, helping secure Hickey.

The trade means the Suns will now have a first-round selection in next month's draft despite trading pick 2 to the Giants for 17-year-old mini-draft selection Jack Martin.

Despite losing Hickey the Suns still boast a wealth of rising star power in the ruck, with Daniel Gorringe, Zac Smith and Tom Nicholls set to enter their third seasons in the AFL.

Suns football manager Marcus Ashcroft said his side was thrilled to gain a top-15 draft selection after coughing up pick 2 to Greater Western Sydney last week.

"Our ability to add pick 13 to our selections in the upcoming draft means we will have the ability to draft another elite young player to our club,'' he said.
 

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Hawks lead race for answers

Hawthorn is angry at the compensation it received for wingman Clinton Young and defender Tom Murphy. Picture: Michael Klein Source: Herald Sun

HAWTHORN is leading the fight for AFL clubs to get more information on the formula used to decide free agency compensation.

The Hawks are studying details to see if they can challenge the draft pick 66 return for running back Clinton Young's move to Collingwood.

"We'll go back through our documentation to see where there's (grounds) for an appeal or not. There doesn't appear to be one at first look,'' Hawks football manager Mark Evans told the Herald Sun today.

Evans said the clubs want more details of the new system, claiming they are "flying blind'' when not even being aware of an offer to a player who's an unrestricted free agency like Young.

"We'll all get use to it, but we need to have a system that has some equity in it. And we need to be able to understand why some things come out the way they do,'' he told SEN radio.

"I know it was an agreement between the AFL and the Players Association and that the formula be kept secret, but it doesn't help us understand the system.

"We've had some discussion with them (AFL), but we certainly haven't put anything formally at this stage.

"It's hard to determine the free agency compensation because we don't understand the details of the formula they've used. And it's not like we've got 10 years of experience of looking at free agency compensation picks to determine whether it's fair or not.

"We've only got the free agency compensation picks that have been handed out and, on the surface of it, pick 66 as a combination for Clinton Young and Tom Murphy doesn't seem just. And certainly doesn't look just when you look at some of the other compensations that were handed out.

"My issue is, if you've got a player who has just played in a grand final team with a club that's right at the top of the ladder and then you end up being 30 or 40 picks behind some of the other compensations for players you think might be regarded as about the same (ability), all I'm saying is that maybe that system we've come up with has got a couple of chinks in it.''

Evans said he wasn't aware there was no compensation for some players.

"We certainly need some better detail on why we ended up getting pick 66 for Clinton Young,'' he said.

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Cats, Suns to light up Geelong

Brian Cook (right) gives Sport Minister Kate Lundy, Federal Member for Corangamite Darren Cheeseman and Federal Member for Corio, Richard Marles MP a tour of the Simonds Stadium redevelopment. Picture: Mike Dugdale Source: Herald Sun

GEELONG will host its first home game under lights when the Cats face Gold Coast on June 1 next season.

The Cats will play up to four night matches at the redeveloped Simonds Stadium which will hold 34,000 fans when the new Players' Stand is completed.

Geelong will play its first 10 matches away from home - and six games outside Victoria - as it waits for construction work to finish. The Cats will then get seven home matches in the final 10-11 rounds.

Geelong chief executive Brian Cook revealed today the Cats hope to unveil a $1.2 million "super screen" scoreboard when the redeveloped stadium makes its debut.

"We're going to have lights here by May 28," Cook told the Cats website.

"For the first time in Geelong's history we're going to have games under lights here in Geelong. We think we'll get three maybe four night games here next year.

"The first game will definitely be against Gold Coast on June 1, a Saturday night, so you've got the Gary Ablett factor, and the Josh Caddy factor now, so it's really exciting."

AFL fixture a challenge for supercomputers

Cook said Geelong's long-term stadium vision - which could take 10 years - was for a venue that could hold more than 37,000 fans and host AFL and other sports including soccer, rugby league and rugby union.

But stage four of the stadium redevelopment is set to cost more than the $110 million spent on the first three stages combined.

Cook also weighed into the free agency debate, questioning the need for compensation picks for clubs that lost players.

"I have a principle that we should not necessarily be compensated, as clubs, for losing free agents, but I'm not sure that would be shared by everyone outside," he told the AFL website.

"The rightful compensation for losing a free agent is to get another one back in, really.

"The dollars that you gain by a free agent going off your list is money that should be used to bring someone on. That's the way I'm looking at it."

The Cats swapped free agents with Melbourne, losing Shannon Byrnes and picking up Jared Rivers.

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Tippett trade talks still on hold

Trade talks have progressed no further for Adelaide and Sydney over disgruntled forward Kurt Tippett. Picture: George Salpigtidis Source: Herald Sun

DAY 14 of the Kurt Tippett saga has closed with Adelaide list manager David Noble summing up talks with Sydney by saying: "No progress".

The Crows and Swans have until Friday to end one of the slowest-moving and longest-running saga in AFL trade history.

And Adelaide says it will seek out a third party to beef up Sydney's offer that currently is seen to stand at draft pick No.23 and out-of-favour forward Jesse White.

"We're exploring those third-partty options all the time - we're looking at all avenues to get the best deal for our club,'' Noble said today, while maintaining that trade talks could drag until the final hour on Friday.

"And in the last moments you find things that were not possible early in the trade talks do unfold. A coach will suddenly agree to release a first-round draft pick."

Of White, who met Adelaide coach Brenton Sanderson at the club's West Lakes base last week, Noble said: "We're still in negotiations."
 

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Power against four-way trade

Port Adelaide is refusing to entertain a four-way trade to offload Ben Jacobs to North Melbourne. Picture: Sarah Reed Source: The Advertiser

PORT Adelaide is resisting the offer of a multi-club trade deal for departing first-round draftee Ben Jacobs.

The Power is preferring a straight deal for draft picks with the Kangaroos rather than a four-way trade that gained currency in speculation today.

"We're trying to keep out of multi-club deals," said Power football chief Peter Rohde.

North Melbourne currently has draft picks No.15, 38 and 39. These are more appealing to the Power than Kangaroos forward Matt Campbell and defender Luke Delaney.

Jacobs was a first-round draft pick (No. 16) in 2010.

Port also may move on Fremantle's 26-year-old defender Greg Broughton as it seeks to replace former vice-captain Jacob Surjan, who was delisted last week.
 

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Morabito confident of derby return

ON TRACK: Fremantle midfielder Anthony Morabito (left) is aiming for a Round 1 return next season. Picture: Daniel Wilkins Source: PerthNow

FREMANTLE could be bolstered for its Round 1 Western Derby by a remarkable return from injury by midfielder Anthony Morabito.

Morabito's manager, Colin Young, said the Dockers bolter was confident he would be ready to put his hand up for the season opener and could be in line for selection as early as the NAB Cup, marking an against-the-odds recovery from consecutive knee reconstructions.

Morabito, the Dockers' top pick from the 2009 draft, has not played for Fremantle since the 2010 finals series after rupturing his left ACL in the following pre-season.

The Peel product, who turns 21 at the end of this month, was battling his way back through the WAFL and had made seven appearances for the Thunder before suffering a recurrence of the injury at a Fremantle training session in July.

Dockers coach Ross Lyon noted last month that his player's initial reconstruction had not been successful, leading to the re-injury, but Young said the second operation had produced better results.

"I haven't spoken to Morra since the best-and-fairest, but he's on track for the NAB Cup," Young said.

"I said to him: 'Still Round 1?' and, he said: 'Nah, NAB's looking good'. He's keen to start for the NAB Cup; he said he's ready to go and doesn't see any problems starting Round 1 and going on.

"He looked in great shape when he was training and he's very confident, very excited about next year."

A pre-season return for Morabito would be a stunning recovery and an overdue bit of good fortune for the footballer.

After his first operation in December, 2010, it took almost 16 months for his return to football  a 15-touch game with Peel reserves in Round 3 in late-March this year.

An NAB Cup return would mark a seven-month layoff, while Round 1 selection to face the Eagles would be eight months' recovery.

Young said there was a notable difference in Morabito's reaction to the latest surgery.

"He went to Melbourne to have the operation under Julian Feller, who's probably the master of all surgeons in Victoria," Young said.

"He was pretty convinced that he'd be back for NAB Cup, if not, then latest Round 1 and so he's very happy with the outcome of working with Julian.

"(The first time around) I don't think in his own mind he felt confident the operations were successful: he didn't feel right.

"He really feels 120 per cent now, since the last one.

"He had no swelling at all after the operation and he's really confident going forward."

Fremantle begins its pre-season on November 14, with the first-to-third-year players, with general manager of football operations Chris Bond saying the Dockers expected Morabito to rejoin ball drills in January.

"It's tragic circumstances, but to his credit he's really dug in," Bond told ABC radio.

"We've had the surgery done and we're expecting him to start running well into our pre-season and join in our football in January.

"We're in no doubt at all that we're going to get a fair bit of footy out of him."

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TV bosses still want GF time swap

Sydney's Nick Malceski is mobbed by teammates after kicking the winning goal in a classic Grand Final win against Hawthorn at the MCG. Picture: Hamish Blair Source: Herald Sun

Seven boss David Leckie still wouldn't mind seeing a later timeslot for the AFL Grand Final. Picture: Getty Images Source: Herald Sun

TELEVISION bosses don't come bigger and badder than Channel 7's David Leckie.

But not even Leckie - armed with hundreds of millions of dollars - could secure a night or twilight AFL Grand Final during the last round of broadcast rights negotiations.

"I'd love to, but I've been bashed around the head," Leckie admitted when the $1.25 billion deal was penned.

The man that bashed him was Andrew Demetriou.

The league chief has long declared that a night Grand Final simply won't happen under his watch.

And on this count of trademark Demetriou belligerence, let's hope he's right.

It's called Grand Final 'Day' for a reason.

Since 1898 when Fitzroy beat the Bombers, the last Saturday afternoon in September has been the showpiece of the Australian game.

Why fix what isn't broken?

But rumblings are growing louder that the TV kings are set to try again, for a twilight slot at least.

Seven yesterday remained tight-lipped about its intentions.

And if you're one of those in favour of the game being played under lights, Collingwood president Eddie McGuire is your man.

"If you are serious about what you are trying to achieve, the ultimate marketing tool the AFL has is the AFL Grand Final," McGuire said this year. "And if you want to put on the biggest and best show you do it at night. Have an entertainment spectacular with a million-dollar budget."

Sorry Ed, but the Rolling Stones could have played pre-game this year and we'd still be talking about Nick Malceski's goal.

The Sydney-Hawthorn epic played out in fading light at the MCG didn't need fireworks or rock bands to make it an all-time great.

Rugby league's failed experiments should serve as another warning.

In 2001, the NRL shifted to a night decider on the whim of Channel 9 before people power got the game moved back to a 5pm start.

When last asked for their opinion, more than 90 per cent of AFL players said they opposed anything other than an afternoon game.

The AFL, obsessed about congestion, said amid the interchange furore this week that all its rule changes were made with a view to player safety and the spectacle of the game.

So surely the best stage for footy's biggest match is a sunny September afternoon - not a night match more likely to be slippery because of dew.

Not to mention the death of the backyard Grand Final BBQ.

But if Demetriou's words ring true, traditionalists need not fret.

"If the only reason we were to do it was to please our broadcasters or to get more eyeballs on it, it wasn't a good enough reason to do it," he has declared.

"Even if we were offered a significant amount of money to move our Grand Final, we wouldn't do it."

That was August 2007 and the boss isn't a man to backflip.

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