Stop the presses! Rewrite the back page 鈥 no, the front page!
After months of speculation and 鈥渨ill he or won鈥檛 he鈥 鈥 it鈥檚 sealed.
The young Reid boy, the long-haired, prodigiously talented Victorian has put pen to paper, the deal is done! Locked in til 2029!
The parade is planned for next Tuesday, only, not through Lathlain, but down the cappuccino strip.
Yes, Murphy Reid has committed to the Dockers.
This kid鈥檚 so skilful, I鈥檓 tipping he used a sharp rock to sign the contract, but made it look like a fountain pen.
The other Reid, Harley, is completely entitled to take his time with his own contract. But Murphy has removed the doubt 鈥 if there was any 鈥 and can now get on with it.
There鈥檚 immense value in that for both club and player. No noise, no uncertainty. Just back to work.
Murphy Reid鈥檚 been a sensation in his first year. The only player Justin Longmuir has debuted in round one the year after being drafted.
Adding a layer to that, in his 14 games so far, Reid鈥檚 never started or finished as sub. Talent doesn鈥檛 earn you that 鈥 impact does.
A midfielder coming into the draft, he鈥檚 learned a new role as a forward and made it look second nature.
He鈥檚 kicked 16 goals and added ten goal assists for the year, the same number as Jason Horne-Francis, Jeremy Cameron, Zac Bailey and more than Bailey Smith, Shai Bolton and Gryan Miers.
Reid currently sits third in line for the Rising Star and you could argue he should be higher. Four goals in four minutes on debut in Geelong was the lone highlight for the Dockers in a dirty day. That doesn鈥檛 happen if you鈥檙e not up to it.
Wait 鈥榯il he completely figures it out. Some will tell you: 鈥減ast performance is not a reliable indicator of future success.鈥
But Murphy Reid isn鈥檛 a super fund. This kid is a sure thing.
Here鈥檚 what I wrote during the pre-season:鈥淔remantle have one here. When you watch this guy train or play, you see things that make you raise the eyebrows.
鈥淭he little deft touches to a teammate鈥檚 advantage, the time and space he finds in congestion 鈥 dare I say it, Mundy-like. He uses the ball exquisitely, seeing players you didn鈥檛 know were there.
鈥淗e鈥檚 young, needs a few more pre-seasons, is about 20 per cent of the finished product 鈥 but this kid won鈥檛 be overwhelmed.鈥
Gee it鈥檚 nice to be right every now and then!
The Dockers have plenty of talent locked in long-term, but this signature might be the most important of all. Reid is part of the next next generation of Fremantle. He鈥檚 an 18-year-old from Melbourne, who still had two more seasons to figure out if the Dockers was home for him, but he signed anyway.
Don鈥檛 for a second think clubs hadn鈥檛 already started sussing out if this guy would get homesick in 12 months. Murphy Reid could鈥檝e started his own bidding war if he wanted.
The signs of love were there early. After Murphy called his parents to tell them of his impending debut back in March, his dad Marcus spoke highly of Fremantle鈥檚 approach: 鈥淜udos to them, what a club! So good. To back you in and look after you like they (have). Mum and I couldn鈥檛 be happier.鈥
It says a lot about how far Fremantle have come. Under the current regime, they haven鈥檛 lost many they wanted to keep.
Lloyd Meek might be the exception, but as it stands, Freo already have too many ruckmen.
If you cast your mind back to the dramatic exodus stories post-2020, the departures of Meek, Griffin Logue, Blake Acres, Liam Henry, Rory Lobb, Darcy Tucker, and Lachie Schulz, things appeared concerning on the surface. But really, while immediate depth was tested, none of those losses has harmed the Dockers current trajectory.
In the same timeframe they鈥檝e signed Andrew Brayshaw, Caleb Serong, Hayden Young and Josh Treacy to long term deals, all Victorian-born kids.
The big fish have been brought home 鈥 Jordan Clark, Luke Jackson, Shai Bolton. Marquee players on the market who all chose the Dockers.
The crafty signings of guys like Corey Wagner, Jaeger O鈥橫eara, Jeremy Sharp, Isaiah Dudley, Pat Voss and the drafting of Cooper Simpson, Karl Worner and Reid, among others, has replaced that previous depth, only with a higher ceiling.
The signature of Reid is a by-product of all that.
The Dockers aren鈥檛 a finished product, far from it. They might not even play finals this season.
But they鈥檙e young, they鈥檙e talented, they鈥檙e committed and that translates to buy-in.
Murphy Reid can see it. He can feel it.
He believes, so he belongs 鈥 he commits.