Former Collingwood president Eddie McGuire has stated that he would revoke Oscar Allen’s captaincy if he were in the West Coast Eagles’ position.
Allen had a meeting with Hawthorn coach Sam Mitchell on Monday, shortly after the Eagles’ defeat to Fremantle on Sunday night.
The 26-year-old forward is out of contract at the season’s end and has previously been rumoured to be considering a shift to Brisbane.
This isn’t the Hawks’ first encounter of this kind; they met with ex-Eagle Tom Barrass around this time last year, eventually bringing him on board during the trade period.
McGuire urged West Coast to take a firm stance and “stand for something”.
“It’s a tough situation … these things occur, but I feel quite strongly about it. I mentioned this last week: if Oscar Allen isn’t genuinely committed, then he shouldn’t be captain, and that’s fine,” McGuire expressed on Nine’s Footy Classified.
“At this point, West Coast needs to embody something meaningful. If Hawthorn is swooping in to charm him over breakfast and distract him after he had a quiet match, while West Coast appears rudderless, then someone has to take action.”
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West Coast CEO Don Pyke acknowledged that this scenario is part of the ‘new era’ of player movements.
“We’re navigating a landscape that’s quite different from the past,” Pyke shared with SEN. “It’s not unusual for clubs to engage with players, and we’ll continue discussions with Oscar regarding his future at the club.
“We certainly want to retain him and are actively working on that with him and his management. This became prominent overnight, and we’ll address it just as we do with all matters.”
When asked how he would manage the situation if he were in Pyke’s position, McGuire indicated he would have immediately stripped Allen of his captaincy.
“I would have told him, ‘mate, you’re no longer captain,'” McGuire declared.
“He should either relinquish his captaincy or sign a new deal and get it sorted. If it were just any player meeting with Hawthorn, it wouldn’t matter, but the captaincy brings a different dynamic.”
Former Adelaide captain Rory Sloane empathised with Allen’s predicament, saying, “It must be uncomfortable for Oscar right now. He should address the team and offer an apology. It’s disrespectful considering he holds the captaincy.”
Nine reporter Tom Morris confirmed that the Eagles currently have no intentions of disciplining Allen for his meeting with Hawthorn.
Now, West Coast faces the significant challenge of travelling to Engie Stadium to take on GWS this Saturday afternoon.
Compiled by SportArena.com.au.
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