‘No thanks’: Greats split over battler’s bid to sign troubled star
AFL great Rory Sloane says troubled star Bobby Hill could make a big impact if he is handed a lifeline by West Coast, but another former player says it would be “a bad fit”.
Eagles list boss Matt Clarke on Thursday revealed the club is looking into the prospect of signing Hill, who quit his $3 million deal with Collingwood in July as he dealt with personal matters.
Bobby Hill is launching a comeback bid. Getty
The Magpies agreed to cut ties with Hill, who was best afield when they won the 2023 AFL grand final, meaning he is a free agent and able to sign a deal with any club that wants him.
St Kilda has also been mentioned as a possible suitor, but the Eagles are the first team to raise their interest publicly in the 26-year-old small forward.
“I think anyone of that sort of talent... you need to look at,” Clarke told AFL Trade Radio.
“Most clubs, I would have thought, are doing some due diligence about Bobby and how he’s tracking. It’d be great if he could get himself back into a great frame of mind and physical shape to give himself a shot at AFL footy.”
Adelaide great Sloane believes the Eagles would benefit from bringing Hill onto their list.
“You would want to sit down with Bobby and make sure he is in the right headspace... to tackle a full pre-season, and make sure if you’re all in you are all in and committed to the footy club,” Sloane said on Footy Fix.
“It is certainly worth a chat anyway, for what he brings and for West Coast in particular, he would complement some of those big boys up front.”
But Port Adelaide great Kane Cornes has cautioned the Eagles against the move.
“They’re a young, impressionable group on the way up rebuilding, doing it the right way, and you’re telling me they are going to tip into Bobby Hill? My goodness,” Cornes said on SEN.
“West Coast should have denied that as quickly as they were asked.
“I understand if (the team) is a (premiership) contender. I’d even understand if it was St Kilda with a strong mentor in Brad Hill and the Indigenous players they have there... but West Coast, no thanks.”
9News Melbourne reporter Owen Leonard says Hill is preparing to run his own time trial, and then make the data available to interested suitors.
“He has to essentially prove he is of sound body and mind, after off-field issues led to his demise at Collingwood,” Leonard said.
“West Coast are assessing whether he would be suitable for their list, and are doing their due diligence on him.”
Hill last spoke publicly in a sit-down interview with 9News Melbourne in September, when he announced his intentions to return to the AFL.
