Opinion
The ageing AFL stars who should pull the pin this year
Kane Cornes
AFL columnistEvery year at every AFL club, a player will start the season not knowing they are about to leave the game. Few get to leave the sport in control of their exit.
Shane Crawford did. Same with Joel Selwood.
Crawford’s microphone grab with the perfect catchcry, “That’s what I’m talking about”, on the premiership stage after winning the 2008 grand final is part of Australian sporting folklore. He left the game at his peak, having climbed and conquered football’s Mount Everest in his final match.
Selwood’s last-minute heroics in the 2022 grand final epitomise every player’s dream – his right foot goal, on the run with a checkside kick from 40 metres sealed his fourth premiership and first as captain at Geelong. It firmed his legacy as the best captain this century, so far.
After much speculation, Selwood retired the next week. Like Crawford, he left on his own terms, bathed in the glow of premiership glory.
These are the exceptions to the norm.
Dustin Martin has achieved everything there is to achieve in his AFL career.Credit: AFL Photos
There is a different storyline for many others, some who will find their twilight years can taint their legacies and put a strain on their bond with the clubs they once called home.
Today, Richmond great Dustin Martin stands at the crossroads, grappling with the stark truth that the golden years at Punt Road have passed.
Unlike Selwood, who sealed his legacy with a fourth flag, Martin finds himself on a different road to the final chapter of his grand career. There will not be a fourth premiership. Not at Richmond, where the Tigers are facing the sombre prospect of rebuilding and reckoning with their flawed calls in list management.
Football does lose its lustre when defeat is a familiar companion. For players, it is repetitive and depressing walking into the club on Mondays after repeated losses. For players such as Martin, who are used to playing in front of big crowds, in prime-time games, with champions as teammates and in big finals, this is amplified.
The motivation to carry on as usual is near impossible to find.
It is time to pen the final chapter and bid farewell, so this should be Martin’s last season.
There is nothing left for him to achieve. Three premierships, three Norm Smith Medals, four All-Australian selections, two best-and-fairest awards, a Leigh Matthews Trophy and 328 goals to his name – it is a resume that will elevate Martin to legend status in the Australian Football Hall of Fame.
Martin turns 33 in June.
Dustin Martin faces a decision on his future this season.Credit: Getty Images
With his 300th game on the horizon, the opportune moment has come to seize the stage one last time, to indulge in a victory lap honouring a career that transcends statistics and trophies.
Martin should reflect on the untidy exit of Hawthorn and Sydney champion Lance “Buddy” Franklin, who played a season too many at Sydney last year.
AFL icon Leigh Matthews echoes the sentiment.
“I think it’s almost sacrilegious to declare that the Swans are better without Buddy Franklin,” he said on Channel Nine’s Footy Furnace.
Martin opens himself up to these critiques if he goes around again.
Collingwood champion Scott Pendlebury has started the year poorly with his age and lack of athleticism starting to catch up. In hindsight, going out like Selwood and Crawford after last year’s premiership triumph would have protected him from the criticism he now faces.
Former Adelaide captain Rory Sloane is another player who has played too long, and Essendon’s Dyson Heppell is in the same boat.
While Martin’s brilliance is unquestioned, there are signs of decline. His disposal count has dropped from 24 in 2023 to 16 this year. Other key statistics including marks, inside-50s and goals have dipped.
Adelaide’s Rory Sloane, Essendon’s Dyson Heppell and Collingwood’s Scott Pendlebury are all nearing the end of their careers.Credit: Getty / Wayne Taylor
Martin is an unrestricted free agent at the end of this season, allowing him to walk to the club of his choice at season’s end.
Gold Coast coach Damien Hardwick met Martin during the off-season and the link to that club is well noted.
Like Franklin, Martin may choose to finish his career at Sydney, with the lure of a lower profile in a non-AFL state.
But how often is that successful? Hawthorn champions Sam Mitchell, Luke Hodge and Jordan Lewis all finished at another club after making the move in the twilight of their careers. Did those moves enhance any of their reputations? It is a shame they didn’t finish at Hawthorn.
Martin should be a one-club player – forever a Richmond champion with his guernsey hanging from the rafters at Punt Road.
There are benefits too for Richmond to farewell Martin this season. He is earning one of the largest salaries in the game – the Tigers need that salary cap relief.
It also would signal a new era for the club, which must focus on youth and rebuilding through the draft.
It would be a mistake for Martin to play on in 2025, and this year should be devoted to a special farewell tour.
In choosing the path of graceful departure, Martin would cement his status not just as a legend of Richmond Football Club, but as an icon in the pantheon of Australian football.
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