Inaugural GWS captain Phil Davis has a word of advice for players who are set to be approached by the Tasmania Devils ahead of the 2028 season.
Canberra-born Davis, who was drafted from SANFL club North Adelaide, played three seasons at Adelaide before crossing over to the Giants ahead of their first season in 2012.
The recently retired defender says that he initially told the Giants that he wasn’t keen on shifting clubs when he was first approached, but slowly changed his mind once the club’s plans were laid out to him.
The 33-year-old suggested that young players who get approached by the Devils in 2027 do the same.
“Well, I said no to the Giants straight away. The first time I got approached, I said no,” Davis told SEN Whateley.
“Then just through injury, I listened to the conversation and then that was probably what changed everything.
“I think for me, what I'm saying to them is you should always be open-minded and work out what's best for you.
“I always thought I was a very loyal person, I was with Adidas for 15 years, but I left my club and everyone thinks I'm a turncoat and I understand why that is.
“But to me, that was a very difficult decision. But once I learned it all (from GWS, I was keen to go).
“I think about my career now and there are a few things I would have liked to have done better, but starting a club and seeing what it's been able to achieve and where it's going to go is something that's pretty special.
“Factoring in some of the intangibles probably is what they'll have to do.”
Davis also thinks that approached players need to consider what roles they play and whether a move to an expansion franchise suits that.
The Giants' foundation co-captain used the example of Tom Scully who struggled initially after moving as a wingman but later had great success for GWS once the side began to build out around him.
“In terms of the actual decision about leaving or not, that's a very difficult decision because everyone's so unique,” Davis said.
“I felt really sorry for Tom Scully during his time at the Giants, he was an outside player that went to be the marquee player.
“We were so bad, you just don't get the ball to your wing because we just lost the ball the whole time and he just absolutely copped it.
“It's funny that when we got good, he was one of the big catalysts, he could have been All-Australian in 2016 and 2017.
“It’s about owning your own situation because it's incredibly difficult.”
As for the financial side of any deal, Davis says his only advice would be for every young player to extend until the end of the 2027 season, just before the Devils join the league.
While not all of those players will be keen on joining the expansion club, he suggested doing so to give themselves leverage as bidding wars ensue.
“There's going to be big money,” Davis said.
“The first $2 million player will come out of Tasmania would be my presumption.
“Money is obviously not everything, but there will be all these factors to take into consideration.
“But what I would tell them if I could do is make sure every single one of your contracts comes out in 2027, I would not be signing until the end of 2028.
“I’d be like, ‘I want to get out of 2027 at least have some leverage no matter what I'm doing’, that's the only business thing.”
The AFL is yet to confirm the exact season that the Devils will join the league, but plans at this stage are aimed at the 2028 campaign.
