Cornes’ huge fears for Collingwood after McRae’s ‘players over picks’ comments

Kane Cornes was concerned by comments made by Collingwood coach Craig McRae about his list-building philosophy.

Speaking on SEN The Run Home, McRae said that he’s a coach who, ‘Wants to bring players in’, and that, ‘I don’t want picks, I want players’, particularly options that can make the side better straight away.

That mindset was acted on by the club last year after creating a trade for Lachie Schultz around a future first-round pick, while this year they’re said to be in the lead for GWS free agent Harry Perryman – who could receive a long-term, lucrative offer from the Magpies.

If Collingwood keeps prioritising established players over draft picks, he foresees the club following the path set by Hawthorn following their premiership successes in the early to mid-2010s when they brought in the likes of Tom Mitchell and Jaeger O’Meara in an attempt to keep their flag window open.

Cornes thinks that could set the Magpies back in the long term.

“We've seen this movie before,” Cornes told AFL Trade Radio’s The Early Trade.

“We've seen it with Alastair Clarkson at Hawthorn after he had all that success.

“There is a very, very similar quote from Alastair Clarkson in his time at Hawthorn, and I'll paraphrase it here but essentially, he says, ‘You can’t rely on the draft because of the compromised nature of it’.

“So, what do they do? They traded all their picks for about three years in a row, and Ryan Burton was about the only first-round draft pick on their list for a time there.

“You know the names that came into that footy club like (Tom) Mitchell), (Jaeger) O’Meara and the like. It sets you back.”

Reports have suggested that the Pies could be set to offer Perryman around $850,000 a year across seven seasons, a deal that Cornes labelled as ridiculous.

“If you've got a draft as strong as this and Collingwood have picks 33, 48 and 51 - they've already traded this year's first for Lachie Schultz,” Cornes said.

“You look at the amount of over 30s on their list, they're going to pay Harry Perryman like he's James Hird.

“It’s just ridiculous money for a player that doesn't really deserve it. I know you get him for free, I get that, but you’re going to use a lot of your salary cap on that player and you’re just going to ignore the draft.

“Saying, ‘I don't want picks’, that is alarming.”

Given that the 2024 AFL Draft is said to be stacked with talent, Cornes thinks that the club needs to bring McRae into line and continue hitting the draft instead of constantly prioritising established players.

He fears that if they don’t, the Magpies could be in a spot of bother in three years’ time.

“So, who's in the hot seat? It's those around Craig McRae who need to be really strong with him and say, ‘Hang on, it’s not about you and this year, it’s about setting our club up for the next five-seven years’,” Cornes said.

“I'm not just talking about Harry Perryman, I’m talking about the alarming nature of those comments from Craig McRae.

“Port Adelaide has got no picks either, but they're going to find a way to get some picks because they are smart enough to go, ‘This draft is absolutely stacked, we’ve got to get into it. If that means trading a good player away, we’re going to get into it’.

“If that's his method ongoing, I fear for the way that the Collingwood Football Club will look in three years’ time.

“It'll be very, very similar to the way it ended for Alastair Clarkson at Hawthorn, where they have to completely gut the joint and start all over again because one coach was so influential on the list management group and traded away everything.”