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\ufeff\u2018MUST REFUSE\u2019: FREE AGENT\u2019S FUTURE UNCLEAR WITH \u2018ANTI-GODFATHER\u2019 OFFER<\/p>\n
Like several other clubs across the AFL, Hawthorn has a number of major contract calls coming up as the trade period slowly approaches \u2014 and not many more pressing than key forward Mitch Lewis.<\/p>\n
The unrestricted free agent has had a four-year deal on the table for some time now at Dingley, but as one rival in particular circles, the Hawks may need to lift their current offer fast.<\/p>\n
\u201cHawthorn has handed the \u2018anti-Godfather deal\u2019. This is the offer that he absolutely must refuse,\u201d Midweek Tackle\u2019s Jon Ralph said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve spoken to Lewis in the last 48 hours, and he\u2019s been remarkably frank. He\u2019s been offered a four-year deal as an unrestricted free agent, but right now, the financials are not anywhere near where he or his manager would like them to be.<\/p>\n
\u201cI asked him if that deal was good enough for him to stay at Hawthorn. His reply: \u2018I don\u2019t know, it\u2019s pretty hard to say what the club is thinking\u2019. He clearly wants to say, but Collingwood is circling.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s such a delicate balancing act; you\u2019ve got to pay your stars and reward them. But, you\u2019ve got to keep some salary cap space for the likes of Zach Merrett, and maybe Ben King. It\u2019s not a balance they\u2019ve got right just yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gold Coast\u2019s King has been heavily linked to the brown and gold in recent weeks, leaving Lewis one of a handful of players across the competition unsure of what the best move is for their career come 2027.<\/p>\n
As the Hawks weigh up secondary plays for the likes of Zach Merrett at Essendon and Bailey Humphrey at the Suns, a long-term commitment from Lewis to the club remains in limbo alongside veteran Jack Gunston and young gun Calsher Dear, for differing reasons.<\/p>\n
\u201cRight now, the expectation is that the offer he\u2019s (Lewis) got at Hawthorn, he would be getting plenty more than that at Collingwood \u2014 we\u2019re talking maybe a million dollars over the life of the deal … to walk into that club,\u201d Herald Sun journalist Josh Barnes added.<\/p>\n
Just how many key forwards can Hawthorn carry on their list heading into 2027?Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n
\u2018EYEBROWS RAISED\u2019 AT $8M CONTRACT RE-JIG FOR \u2018DISRESPECTED\u2019 STAR<\/p>\n
Details surrounding a surprise two-year extension for North Melbourne star Harry Sheezel have been revealed in a move understood to land him a monster pay rise.<\/p>\n
Midweek Tackle panellist Josh Barnes reported on Tuesday night that the 21-year-old\u2019s new term until the end of 2032 at Arden Street is a major win-win for both he and the Kangaroos.<\/p>\n
\u201cEyebrows were sort of raised when this came out around the weekend that he\u2019s added two years to his deal. This isn\u2019t just two extra years; the whole deal has been re-written,\u201d Barnes told Fox Footy.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s got a six-year contract (that\u2019s) about $8 million \u2014 maybe even more. It\u2019s going to make him one of the highest-paid players in the league … I think this is just good business.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think North Melbourne has looked at it and thought: \u2018There is no surer bet in the AFL than Harry Sheezel right now\u2019. He\u2019s missed two games in his whole career, finished top three in the best and fairest every year he\u2019s played. He\u2019s won two of them, he\u2019s the vice-captain already \u2014 let\u2019s just pay him what he\u2019s worth and get it over and done with.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Ajax junior\u2019s old deal already saw him locked in as a Shinboner until the end of 2030, however such has been the consistency of his form and fitness, both parties came to the table years ahead they needed to. <\/p>\n
\u201cHe gets completely disrespected, he\u2019s never in the conversation as a top AFL player … I think he\u2019ll be a 400-gamer there. I just love everything about Harry Sheezel,\u201d Jon Ralph added.<\/p>\n
Harry Sheezel celebrates during the 2026 AFL Round 4 match between the North Melbourne Kangaroos and the Carlton Blues at Marvel Stadium on April 3, 2026 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Michael Willson via Getty Images)Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n
YOUNG GUN PUTS HAWKS TALKS \u2018ON ICE\u2019<\/p>\n
Not too dissimilarly to key forward teammate Mitch Lewis, young Hawks gun Calsher Dear has put contract talks \u201con ice\u201d with just eight rounds to go this home-and-away season.<\/p>\n
After six weeks out of the senior side, the 20-year-old tall returned to the AFL fold last Friday night against GWS as an injured Jack Gunston continues to recover from a nagging foot injury.<\/p>\n
And while undoubtedly one of the club\u2019s most promising young talents, Dear has been forced to sit and wait on potential list changes outside of his control.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis talks are officially on ice. I can tell you tonight that he\u2019s put off those negotiations for the moment, really just to focus on his football,\u201d Midweek Tackle\u2019s Lauren Wood revealed. <\/p>\n
\u201cHe played 17 games in that breakout season two years ago. Nine games last year, and just the five this year as he\u2019s back in the side that beat GWS last Friday night.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe opened up on the toll that the expectations have taken on him. He was really frank about (how) it was his own expectations that were weighing heavily on him, as much as the external ones.<\/p>\n
\u201cAdd into that the contract pressure (and) the spectre of Ben King looming large across this forward line at the moment. It\u2019s a really difficult situation the Hawthorn forward line are in at the moment. What Jack Gunston does plays into it as well … there\u2019s certainly a lot of uncertainty around the spearheads.\u201d<\/p>\n