Updated ,first published
In today’s AFL briefing:
- Beau McCreery addresses a report that expansion club Tasmania have targeted him with a mega offer.
- Demon Harrison Petty is having further tests as Melbourne try to find the cause of his dizzy spell.
The AFL’s new $7 million man?
Hannah Kennelly
Collingwood midfielder Beau McCreery has laughed off reports linking him to a potential $7 million offer from new expansion club Tasmania Devils.
On Tuesday night, AFL.com.au reported that Tasmania had identified McCreery – who is signed with the Magpies until 2027 – as a player of interest for their inaugural list as they prepare to enter the competition in 2028, and was a target for a potential deal worth $1 million a season for seven years.
McCreery, who has played 102 games since making his debut in 2021, did the radio rounds on Wednesday morning ahead of the annual Anzac Day clash with Essendon at the MCG and laughed off questions surrounding the whopping deal, saying he was unaware of any formal offer.
The 25-year-old said Tasmania had not reached out to him with an offer during an interview on Triple M.
“I was just as rattled when you were when you heard it,” McCreery said.
“No, not personally, they haven’t [reached out]. Obviously, it’s big news to hear, but I’m still contracted to Collingwood for the next two years … so, my eyes are on the prize there and obviously … we’ve got a big game this weekend.”
In a separate radio interview on Fox, McCreery again said he didn’t know about an offer.
Demons seek answers on Petty
Melbourne’s Harrison Petty is undergoing a raft of tests in a bid to explain his mysterious mid-match wobbly spell, despite the Demons already placing the defender in concussion protocols.
Melbourne have not been able to identify the exact cause of Petty’s issue after he was escorted from the MCG by medical staff in the third term of their clash against the Brisbane Lions on Sunday afternoon.
“It’s a unique situation,” Melbourne coach Steven King said on Wednesday. “We’re still doing some tests with him at the moment to ensure what it could be.
“His health and wellbeing is the most important thing. We’re still not really sure exactly what’s happened, and so we’re exploring all those possibilities.
“We’ve put him in protocols at the moment because that’s the most obvious, but we’re still not 100 per cent sure that that’s the case.”
Petty copped a hit to the chin during a marking contest almost 45 minutes before he suffered blurred vision in the Demons’ defensive goal square.
He turned over a kick and immediately sank to his haunches. He then walked back to lean on the goal post before being helped by Melbourne teammates.
Petty suffered concussion against Gold Coast in June last year.
“Because of his history, we’ve put him in protocols at the moment because that’s the most obvious thing that might have happened,” King said.
“But there’s still a range of things that it could be, so we’re just making sure that that is the priority, to get to the bottom of it.”
Petty had tests on Tuesday and was expected to have more this week.
“Once we get all that information, we’ll make sure we sit down with the relevant people, the doctors, and make sure we set the right plan for Harrison,” King said.
King said he had been making his way from the coach’s box to the ground and by the time he reached the interchange bench, Petty was being walked off.
“We had six or eight teammates get to him,” King said.
“I am actually really proud of the way we handled the whole situation in terms of just making sure that his welfare was above the game that was being played.”
King said he was looking forward to being part of his first Anzac Day eve match when his eighth-placed Demons tackle the winless Richmond at the MCG on Friday night.
“I’m looking forward to representing our club and all our great service people just with the whole pre-game and the atmosphere,” he said.
“I’ve gone to a lot and watched, and now to be part of it is going to be pretty special.”
King said his Melbourne players were behind using rapper Warren G’s song Regulate as a pointer during matches.
“That’s not a bad sign to have at different times of the game,” the first-year coach said.
“It’s not something that’s an end-of-game scenario. It’s more one for the boys to probably just take stock and let the game breathe.”
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Hannah Kennelly is an award-winning sports reporter and Formula 1 writer at The Age.Connect via email.
