For all Ron's experience and nous, he really has cocked up with Matthew's negotiations. Imagine knocking back a generous offer like Carlton made 1st time round. $400K a year is pretty f'n good for a player like Skinny. Plus $50K bonus!

Ron, just for your next time, don't be confrontational for the sake of it!!

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C'mon Blueboys!

If all of this is fact then the club has handled negotiations very well. If he decides to walk now I could not give two hoots. He was offered a fantastic contract for a player turning 30 coming off his worst season in years. The club with its original offer more than compensated for his loyalty he showed a couple of years ago.

The ball is well and truly in your court lappo.

Hope this comes off, he's a great footballer.

Joseph, you're a turkey..... a dead-set tosser. Hope he loses sleep at night knowing he cost his client 200K, and the respect of many in the industry and public.

Somehow I don't think ron gives a shit as long as he gets his cut .

Sign up Matty and let's have a fresh start for 2006. Now that the blood sucking weasel has gone, we can finally look forward.

If he cost Matty 200k then he also cost himself part of that!

Don't tell me I was right.

Luke Power
Shannon Grant
Matty Lappin

whats the common denomiantor with all of them?

Experienced players who have refused huge offers in the past to stay at there clubs. All been very good players. All for whatever reason have had contract negotiations this year that have dragged on for months and months. All been played out in the media.

I also forgot that they are "managed" by Ron Joseph. Who used to have a very good reputation but these days seems to be a bitter old man looking to stick it to as many clubs as he can. I think Matty has been taking very poor advice and happy Carlton did not sign him yet. 400k is big money and he really should have taken that straight away.
Hope he re-signs and learns to not listen to his "manager" anymore and plays like we know he can next year.

Good to see some commonsense starting to prevail. Looks like Matty will sign by weeks end. I for one will be very happy to see Skinny out there playing for the Blues

It would seem that the stand that the club has made on contracts has paid off.

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A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty" -Winston Churchill

L.M 35-06

Are the numbers mentioned remotely close?

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Working alone. At the coalface. Scott's gone for lunch! Said he would be back in 30 mins.

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"You are being watched. The government has a secret system. A machine that spies on you every hour of every day. I know because I built it." - Finch

I believe so, although I think the 400 000 figure is a little high though.

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A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty" -Winston Churchill

L.M 35-06

Can they offer him a 2 1/2 year or a 2 1/4 year contract?(only joking)...

but if there was some way to compromise i think that would be great. Lappin is a true blue... i hope he doesn't turn his back on the club just for money. Surely there are more important things in life than money. I can't name them right now. oh yeah, that's right - the Beatles mentioned something about love being more important. What drugs were those guys on?

I love Lappin's manager... or maybe i am just cracking up?

Why you would laugh at this Effes is a mystery. The club made offers to all big name non contracted players that were well below what they had been paid previously. Lance signed for 2, Campo decided to try his luck elsewhere and now Lappin looks like signing for a lot less than he was originally offered and for 2 not three. We didn't cave in to the demands that thier managers made, as we have previously. As a result we have freed up somewhere around 600 000 in the salary cap. That in anyones language is a good result.

The only way you could not be happy is if you wanted all three gone period and that quite frankly was never going to happen.

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A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty" -Winston Churchill

L.M 35-06

It's also about setting a standard for future negotiations. Managers won't be able to walk and demand unrealistic comntracts anymore after next year ... we'll finally be competing on an even playing field contractually - the first meaningful step in the long, painful journey to competitiveness.

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In WADA we trust

The club came out and stated that they wouldnt negotiate on contracts Mark.
What concessions did they actually make?
Earlier this month you stated

"Pretty confident about the 350 and 400 figures. " when questioned on Whitnalls contract.

You had no idea about the dollars, the conditions or the concessions that were made.
Do you now?
If not, why come out and make statements about what was achieved?

Lances manager stated that components of the contract had been removed.
The Age newspaper stated it hads been confirmed Carlton increased its offer 0n the 29th of September.

I have no doubt in my mind that Carlton moved on Lances contract but I have no proof.
Unless you have proof that the club stuck firm, why state it as fact?

I'd suggest thats why Effes is having a chuckle.
The passage of time doesnt make things become factual.

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Looking forward to seeing our potential realised.

Yes, great job indeed. And after the Fevola fiasco, you can almost guarantee that no decent Carlton player will ever re-sign mid year for less money than they can get elsewhere ever again.

I thoroughly look forward to the headaches we will be put through in the future - trade period and we have players we don't want to lose for nothing uncontracted - and who can blame the players, why should they re-sign early???

Yes, great job indeed.

BV, Now I know that you run a successful small business so you would know that there is always negoiation in the construction of contracts particularly in the minor details even if the substance of the contract remains the same. The fact remains that the club maintained its ground in the substance of the contracts offered to the players concerned. They did not move at all on the 2 year position in all three. They actually appear to have actually achievced a reduction in the original offer made to Lappo, now that is an outstanding result. Whits contract was altered in the removal of some performance elements for a small increase in the base amount, not a major cave in or concession by the club and given he has gone from 500 000 to 350 000 that is also a good result. In Campos case the club made an offer and did not budge. Period.

Now if you want to condemn the club for what is really a minor change in Whits contract, then I think you are being churlish for the sake of it particularly given any increase in Whits contract has been offset by the further reduction in Lappos original deal.

My view is, and I know you and others disagree, is that the club has done outstandingly well in the negoiations with these players.

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A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty" -Winston Churchill

L.M 35-06

The club always knew Skinny was going to stay- In fact Malouf and co were so confident they didnt even entertain the thought of offering him around during trade week.
Far too many people (media particularly) are blinded by player managers and theire ridiculous 'upping- price- through media' tendencies.

Mackays Mistress, If Fev had not signed mid year, there is no way he would have got the same deal at years end. I suspect he would have got a lot less.

In my view Fevs deal is a bad one for the club, given the way he has played since signing, but as I did when when signed the Big Ones a few yers ago, I won't complain about but remember them when the next round of negoiations come up.

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A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty" -Winston Churchill

L.M 35-06

Short memory MM. Waite, Walker, Carazzo all signed before seasons end. Not even a whisper about them holding the club to ransom.
If players and their managers want to play unreasonable games then I could not care less how many players we lose.

Holy cow, if that article is right, that's a monumental F&^% up by his manager....almost criminal.......

He won't lose sleep about not getting Matty the money, he'll lose sleep about that article appearing and word getting out

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“Every single element of the Club has to be the best in the league, meticulously and methodically, and only by doing this will we be elite and challenge for number 17.”
Greg Lee