Carlton’s decision to delist midfielder Matthew Kennedy with the promise of re-drafting him in the Rookie Draft has raised David King’s eyebrows.
The former first round draft pick has played 48 career games and only seven in 2020, with the Blues giving him a run-on ball in the middle of the season before moving forward and eventually omitting him.
King doesn’t believe a player like Kennedy – or Lachie Henderson with Geelong in 2020 – should be on a rookie list.
“Clearly he is (a better footballer than being on the rookie list). I don’t understand the whole rookie thing, how you can just slide a player from the list proper to the rookie spots,” he told SEN Breakfast.
“I don’t understand that. I think we’ve lost our way with the whole rookie scenario.
“It should be a first-time opportunist, 18 to 24 (years old). Cap it, I reckon. When we had Drew Petrie going to West Coast as a rooki, that’s when we lost our way.
“It’s crazy. If they’re good enough to be on the list, well they have to suck up a list spot, simple as that for me. I just think it’s a sneaky way of getting around things.”
King admits however that 2020 is a different year and the changes to list sizes gives clubs an out.
“You can still pay them whatever the contract states, so from a financial standpoint it doesn’t really impact your list, but this will be a different off-season, so we probably have to give some grace,” he said.
“There’s some thoughts going around that some clubs will only take one player in the draft because lists will be so full already, the dropping of lists by three or four players makes it pretty tight.
“I think the early feedback when the Kangaroos delisted 11 players was ‘how are they going to replace these guys?’. Well, the lists have dropped, you get some flexibility in doing so and you get picks in the draft, they’ll fill pretty quick.”
The Blues made four list changes yesterday, delisting Harrison Macreadie, Cameron Polson, Fraser Phillips and Callum Moore.