They weren't willing - don't know about not able. I can see the issue if Buddy were to retire or be delisted. But if he demands a trade to another club (and another club is willing to take him), that's a completely different scenario.
I really don't believe we're having this discussion - hypothetical or otherwise - about trading Buddy. It's daft. He's the best player at the club by some margin, and the most important drawcard by an even larger margin (with only Heeney maybe within shouting distance). He's a joy to watch and seems to be enjoying his football as much as ever, and enjoying the relative anonymity that Sydney offers him (off-field).
I can't agree with those who describe his game on Thursday as a "stinker". It might not have been his best game ever for the club but he was moving well, had a decent number of shots at goal (even though his kicking wasn't on), applied good pressure, set team mates up for other scoring opportunities etc. He has had a few games for the club that I would describe as stinkers (the Geelong final of a couple of years ago, last year's GWS final, possibly the 2016GF) but most (and certainly the examples I've provided) were when he was severely hampered by injury (and possibly shouldn't have been out there when he carried the injury into the game). These games have been few and far between.
Bookmarks