“This has the possibility to decimate Gold Coast”: Cornes and Lyon tear into “unthinkable” decision
AFL greats Kane Cornes and Garry Lyon haven't held back in their assessment of Gold Coast, after Hugh Greenwood was poached by North Melbourne on Monday afternoon.
The Suns had delisted Greenwood, Rory Thompson and Jez McLennan with the intention to redraft them to assist their overall list strategy, and meet the AFL’s requirement to make three selections in the National Draft.
However, they didn’t account for Greenwood receiving a better offer from another club, and the 29-year-old was happy to accept the extra security and join the Roos as a delisted free agent on a two-year deal.
It’s led to fierce criticism of the fledgling club, who have struggled with player retention problems in the past, only to create their own this time.
It’s also eerily similar to the Jarryd Lyons situation, when he was delisted by the Suns before becoming an elite midfielder for Brisbane, finishing equal ninth in the 2021 Brownlow Medal count.
Kane Cornes spoke on SEN SA Breakfast on Tuesday morning, detailing the enormous impact this could have on Gold Coast’s future.
“Gold Coast have just let a player go with great character, who gives his absolute heart and soul every week, who is tough and one of the best tacklers in the competition, he’s uncompromising on his effort,” Cornes said.
“This has the possibility to decimate Gold Coast.
“You’re not going to blame Ben King if he leaves, you absolutely won’t, because this is the way they’re handling things.
“Jarryd Lyons is out the door, goes on to be a top 50 player in the game.
“Hugh Greenwood goes out the door, I’m not saying he’s a top 50 player in the game, far from it.
“But what he is, he’s a glue guy, and he’s an important player in the mix of a team with these young players, and they’ve let him walk out the door for nothing.”
New Suns footy manager Wayne Campbell was in his first official day in the role, while list manager Craig Cameron has been at the club since 2017.
Cornes didn’t miss in his assessment of the duo, and all others involved in the decision to delist Greenwood.
“If that’s not a sackable decision I don’t know what is,” he said.
“I think recruiters get a lot more leeway than anyone else in the AFL industry.
“Three bad seasons as an AFL player, bang, gone.
“Three bad seasons as a recruiter, we’ll go again, we’ll wait until the fifth year of the player you just picked up and see if he turns the corner and is any good.
“If you’re going to get a job in the AFL system, recruiting is where you’ll want to be. You’ll get the longest career.”
SEN Breakfast host Lyon was also similarly critical of how the Suns could put one of their best players in the obscure situation.
He heaped praise on the player Greenwood is, saying the midfielder represents everything the Suns want to be, yet aren’t.
“How do you arrive at the fact that Hugh Greenwood, of all the players on your list, he’s the one that might get past (in the draft),” Lyon said.
“Hugh Greenwood is everything that the Gold Coast Suns aspire to be and have never been in their short period of existence.
“He is hard-working, he is consistent, he is uncompromising, his standards don’t alter from week to week, he’s tough, he wins contested ball, he tackles, he plays his guts out every single time he takes the field, and he’s the one player they think that no one else is going to want to take?
“It is just, on every level, unthinkable.
“It’s an embarrassment on this football club.
“When you look at that footy club, and the problems that have existed there in terms of player retention.
“They had this bloke, they identified him, I watched him play at the MCG - maybe this is why I’m a bit passionate about it - when they beat Collingwood.
“His leadership was unbelievable, and I’m thinking for all the other problems this football clubs got, at least they’ve got this bloke, who looks like a heart and soul guy.
“He is everything they aspire to be and aren’t and they let him walk out the door.
“Not only did they let him walk out the door, they facilitated him walking out the door.
“You don’t open the door to having the fabric of your club ripped in half, he’s a fabric player.”
Greenwood suffered a knee injury in July 2021 that ended his season prematurely, but had enjoyed a consistent season prior.
He played 15 games in 2021 to average 18 disposals and six clearances, while leading the competition for tackles per game with an average of 8.6.