Suns let go of Garlett0:23
AFL: Gold Coast youngster Jarrod Garlett has been released despite signing a two-year contract extension in August.
Jimmy Bartel says he would have been upset if Gary Ablett returned to Geelong after his retirement
JIMMY Bartel would have been shattered if Gary Ablett returned to Geelong during the AFL Trade Period.
Ablett shocked the AFL world when it was revealed he’d requested a move back to Geelong last month, a request that was quickly knocked on the head by Gold Coast.
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Bartel and Ablett played together from 2003 to 2010, winning premierships in 2007 and 2009, as well a one Brownlow Medal each.
Bartel announced his retirement before Ablett’s trade bombshell became public and the Cats great said it would have been great to play alongside his mate one more time.
“I would have been a little bit upset in a way. I wouldn’t have had the chance to play with him again,” Bartel said on RSN Radio.
The move won’t happen this year and Bartel questioned how the Cats would fit the superstar into an already tight salary cap.
“If you couldn’t get [Brett] Deledio with salary [restrictions], you’re not getting Gazza over the line,” he said.
“There has to be something else that he would want to come back for, [so] he would be happy to play for $300-400,000 [a season].”
Bartel questioned whether Ablett still believed Gold Coast could make finals before he retired with the loss of Harley Bennell, Charlie Dixon and Zac Smith last season as well as Jaeger O’Meara and Dion Prestia this year.