Essendon is no closer to locking in Darcy Parish, several weeks after tabling a five-year deal for the free agent.
The Bombers and Parish’s management are significantly apart on key details as contract negotiations stand still with just one match remaining in the season.
The stalemate is due to three key elements.
The first is the length of the deal. Essendon will not budge on the five years it has offered, which would lock Parish in until the end of 2028.
But Parish’s camp wants a six-year contract following an All-Australian season in 2021, plus second and ninth place finishes in the last two best and fairest vote counts.
This deal would mean Parish is 32 when he comes out of contract.
For comparison, Harry Himmelberg, who is 14 months older than Parish, was slated to sign a five-year deal at GWS earlier this season, but in the last 48 hours the Giants clinched it by upping it to six years.
Essendon captain Zach Merrett signed a six-year deal in 2021, which takes him through to the end of 2027.
The second element the club and Parish’s management must find common ground on is the money.
Rival clubs believe there is a $50-100,000 gap (per year) between the two parties, which extrapolated out is up to $500,000 across five years.
One list manager, who asked not to be quoted, said Parish is worth $750-800,000 per season.
The final element relates to the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).
With no resolution on total player payments yet, Essendon is refusing to automatically pass on any uplift to its players.
If the CBA was to rise by 10 per cent (hypothetically), many of the AFL’s best players have a clause in their contract which entitles them to receive the same percentage pay rise.
Parish’s agents, of Phoenix Management Group, would like Parish to be one of those players. As it stands, the Bombers are rejecting this request.
It's understood 16 of the 18 clubs are open-minded to a reasonable clause.
The AFL Players' Association does not mandate any particular clause in individual player contracts relating to the CBA, preferring to leave it up to clubs and agents to negotiate.
SEN.com.au spoke to two rival list managers on this subject. They said their clubs determine who deserves this clause on a player-by-player basis, rather than a one-size fits all approach.
Both said the very best players usually have a clause which allows them share in the uplift, while the players with less value often don't.
In saying all this, it's universally agreed that Parish wants to stay at Essendon. While Geelong has reportedly shown interest in the past, the former Pick 5 sees his future at the Bombers and is committed to re-signing.
Rival clubs believe there is not a huge market for the on-baller.
But behind the scenes there is a stand-off between club and manager which has stretched on far longer than either party would have liked.
It's not unusual for player managers to value their clients more than the club, but the uncertainty around the next CBA deal has added another layer of complexity around already tense negotiations.