MENTION “free agency” to any old footy codger at the pub and brace yourself for a wave of beer scented spit through angry false teeth. “Free agency?! I remember when..”

Yes. You do remember when footballers played for a pittance.

MANY remember the 2010 AFL Grand Final between St Kilda and Collingwood as being the first draw since North Melbourne vs. Collingwood in 1977. But it is the story of Brendon Goddard’s Grand Final heroics and later his deflection to Essendon, which is an important tale. The 27 year old soared higher than any other

SOMEWHAT lost in last week’s news cycle AFL.com.au published a preliminary list of players that will be eligible for free agency at the end of the 2013 season. The AFL (not to be confused with their official website) however has yet to release the actual list which will include not only the players but their respective restricted or unrestricted

Football Nation’s Trade Week feature providing our readers with a complete summary of player movements and signings for every team

THE inaugural AFL free agency period has now drawn to a close and we will no doubt be asking questions about what it achieved in the weeks and months to come. Adding fuel to that debate will be the compensation picks that have been awarded to clubs that suffered a net loss of players through the free

THE AFL off-season continues with free agency moving into week two and the beginning of the trade week period. The rumours fly and player transactions continue so for those of you that missed it, here’s a quick run down of what we know after the second week of player movements and trade activity.   The Demons get

IN a deal that shows that the AFL still has some kinks to work out of the new free agency system, Essendon forward Angus Monfries has been traded to Port Adelaide for the Power’s third round draft pick. In a move that is sure to challenge the spirit of the rule if not the letter,

IT’S been a busy week already with plenty of talk and even some major player movements so for those of you that missed it, here’s a quick run down of what we know after the first week of off-season player movements. Free agency has started Paul Roos speaks out saying that free agency is destroying

TWO days ago Magpies coach Nathan Buckley officially denied that Collingwood had negotiated a deal for former West Coast Eagle Quinten Lynch. Today it is widely being reported that a deal is done. It’s all just a matter of timing. Lynch, 29, is an unrestricted free agent and had informed the Eagles last week that he would be

AS we reported way back on September 15, Richmond was keen to get the services of Port Adelaide key defender Troy Chaplin and they have taken the first big step towards that by announcing late yesterday that they had tabled an offer to him under the new free agency rules. Chaplin is the second Power player to be offered

HOURS into the commencement of Trade Week and the beginning of the free agency era in the AFL, the Richmond Football Club has announced that they have secured the services of former Adelaide forward/midfielder Chris Knights. “We’re delighted to have gained Chris’ services, as we believe he’ll be a valuable acquisition for our group,” said Richmond’s General Manager of Football, Craig Cameron.

FREMANTLE has dived into the free agency market making a bid for out of contract Port Adelaide defender Danyle Pearce making him the first player to take advantage of the new rules managing player movement. The clock is now ticking for the Power who have just 72 hours to match the offer or lose the services of

THROUGHOUT the year Football Nation has run a series of articles on free agency to help bring fans up to speed on what it will mean for the AFL and we present those articles again as part of AFL Free Agency Primer

AFTER the completion of the 2012 AFL season the league will be revolutionised by the introduction of free agency. For eligible players this will give them the ability to leave their current club, bypassing the draft and trade periods, and essentially pick their next employer themselves. For the AFL, this will be an unprecedented change. In the lead

AFTER the completion of the 2012 AFL season the league will be revolutionised by the introduction of free agency. For eligible players this will give them the ability to leave their current club, bypassing the draft and trade periods, and essentially pick their next employer themselves. For the AFL, this will be an unprecedented change. In the lead

AFTER the completion of the 2012 AFL season the league will be revolutionised by the introduction of free agency. For eligible players this will give them the ability to leave their current club, bypassing the draft and trade periods, and essentially pick their next employer themselves. For the AFL, this will be an unprecedented change. In the lead

AFTER the completion of the 2012 AFL season the league will be revolutionised by the introduction of free agency. For eligible players this will give them the ability to leave their current club, bypassing the draft and trade periods, and essentially pick their next employer themselves. For the AFL, this will be an unprecedented change. In the lead

AFTER the completion of the 2012 AFL season the league will be revolutionised by the introduction of free agency. For eligible players this will give them the ability to leave their current club, bypassing the draft and trade periods, and essentially pick their next employer themselves. For the AFL, this will be an unprecedented change. In the lead

AFTER the completion of the 2012 AFL season the league will be revolutionised by the introduction of free agency. For eligible players this will give them the ability to leave their current club, bypassing the draft and trade periods, and essentially pick their next employer themselves. For the AFL, this will be an unprecedented change. In the lead

AFTER the completion of the 2012 AFL season the league will be revolutionised by the introduction of free agency. For eligible players this will give them the ability to leave their current club, bypassing the draft and trade periods, and essentially pick their next employer themselves. For the AFL, this will be an unprecedented change. In the lead

AFTER the completion of the 2012 AFL season the league will be revolutionised by the introduction of free agency. For eligible players this will give them the ability to leave their current club, bypassing the draft and trade periods, and essentially pick their next employer themselves. For the AFL, this will be an unprecedented change. In the lead

AFTER the completion of the 2012 AFL season the league will be revolutionised by the introduction of free agency. For eligible players this will give them the ability to leave their current club, bypassing the draft and trade periods, and essentially pick their next employer themselves. For the AFL, this will be an unprecedented change. In the lead

AFTER the completion of the 2012 AFL season the league will be revolutionised by the introduction of free agency. For eligible players this will give them the ability to leave their current club, bypassing the draft and trade periods, and essentially pick their next employer themselves. For the AFL, this will be an unprecedented change. In the lead

After the completion of the 2012 AFL season the league will be revolutionised by the introduction of free agency. For eligible players this will give them the ability to leave their current club, bypassing the draft and trade periods, and essentially pick their next employer themselves. For the AFL, this will be an unprecedented change. In the lead

After the completion of the 2012 AFL season the league will be revolutionised by the introduction of free agency. For eligible players this will give them the ability to leave their current club, bypassing the draft and trade periods, and essentially pick their next employer themselves. For the AFL, this will be an unprecedented change. In the lead

COLLINGWOOD forward Travis Cloke is soon to be a free agent and shortly after that very rich with the HeraldSun reporting today that three clubs have made an offer of $1 million-plus per year for his services next year and a fourth club indicating that it will join the chase for the superstar forward as well

After the completion of the 2012 AFL season the league will be revolutionised by the introduction of free agency. For eligible players this will give them the ability to leave their current club, bypassing the draft and trade periods, and essentially pick their next employer themselves. For the AFL, this will be an unprecedented change. In the lead

After the completion of the 2012 AFL season the league will be revolutionised by the introduction of free agency. For eligible players this will give them the ability to leave their current club, bypassing the draft and trade periods, and essentially pick their next employer themselves. For the AFL, this will be an unprecedented change. In the lead

After the completion of the 2012 AFL season the league will be revolutionised by the introduction of free agency. For eligible players this will give them the ability to leave their current club, bypassing the draft and trade periods, and essentially pick their next employer themselves. For the AFL, this will be an unprecedented change. In the

WHEN the AFL Players Association (AFLPA) announced the agreement that will see the introduction of Free Agency after the 2012 season they said “In a nutshell, Free Agency will provide a player who has played 8 years or more at the one club to negotiate directly with the club of his choice.” With the start

THE conclusion of the 2012 AFL season will see Free Agency become a part of the off-season for the first time. Football Nation guest writer Alex Kingham looks at the impending changes in player movement

SPECULATION that star Collingwood forward Travis Cloke will move on has been turned up a notch as news has emerged today that he has signed with sport management company RCM Sport.