BY DAN

Canberra are not going quietly.

Their proposed deal to Jamal Fogarty has been upped to two years, according to the Sydney Morning Herald. This includes an apparently $1m over the two years, and no clarity on if there are any other options/clauses as part of that. That’s important.

Let’s start with the obvious. The Raiders extending their offer to include a second year is a big deal. That had clearly been a sticking issue for Fogarty in his quest for a bit of security, and the club coming to meet him on that suggests that the parameters of making a deal have changed. Whereas they had potentially been comfortable with letting him go, evidently they are making a move to make it clear they want him to stay. Stick had repeatedly said as much, but when they were offering only year long extension, that always felt a little hollow. If this is true it feels like a big step change.

There are challenges with this. Ethan Sanders will have gone from measuring the curtains on Fogarty’s locker (oh just pretend they’re there, it’s an election thing), he’ll now potentially be worrying about the pathway promised to him. He came to Canberra for an opportunity to play first grade. The trail looks a little darker today.

That’s not to say Fogarty’s deal would keep Sanders out of first grade, and if Sanders is good enough Stick will prioritise him. He’s been clear on that. But it may make young feet a little restless. This will be a test of Stuart’s communication abilities – keeping the young man in the tent and happy while this all swirls would be a challenge.

That’s why the clauses and options on this matter so much. This second year may be a one promised and one optional situation, where we have this discussion about whether Canberra will pick up the second year of the deal this time next year. Offering Fogarty this option in his favour would give him the security of length and the option to pursue other jobs if the team started favouring the younger player.

Indeed with an optional deal he may still have the right to test the market after this season, meaning he could have two years in a deal here, and more promised after. That could happen even with a solid two-year deal, contracts being contracts and honour being a myth and all that. But this makes the discussion more explicit.

There’s also a possibility this information was released in order to drive up his price elsewhere. The reporting of length and value was not confirmed by the Raiders, and suggests perhaps management giving running updates to journalists over the nature of negotiations. Perhaps Manly or someone else comes harder. I’m not clear if the Milk have the cash to keep going. I wouldn’t think they have the capacity to go longer either. I presume Manly, or other parties, do. But we’ll see.

I’m beyond knowing how this is going to play out. Our contention had always been that while the Raiders were only offering one year, they were at a structural disadvantage in keeping Jamal. That has now changed and all bets are off. This is big deal. Will it land the big deal though?

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