Ricciuto 'wasn't trying to have a crack' at former Crows
Adelaide football director Mark Ricciuto is adamant he "wasn't trying to have a crack" at ex-Crows Mitch McGovern and Jake Lever when discussing their departures from the club.
The manager of former Adelaide players McGovern and Charlie Cameron took aim at Ricciuto over comments the Brownlow medallist made about them when speaking on Triple M Adelaide on Wednesday.
Carlton's Mitch McGovern.Credit:AAP
Ricciuto said on Wednesday that former Crows such as Lever and McGovern had left for money, and specifically singled out McGovern as overpaid and underperforming at Carlton.
Ricciuto stood by his comments, but acknowledged on Thursday that money was not the only scenario behind the host of departures from Adelaide.
"I wasn't trying to offend McGovern or Jake or anyone," Ricciuto said on Triple M.
"If they get a contract offer that's higher and they get some security then good luck to them for taking it. That's what most people would do in society, they've got to look after themselves.
"It wasn't trying to have a crack at them, it was trying to make Crows fans understand why some players have left and the reason why."
Young took exception to Ricciuto's comments on Wednesday, particularly those about McGovern, in which Ricciuto said: "He's [McGovern's] got what we want, we love people that contest in the forward line and [have] got plenty of speed – we need speed in the forward line – but, once again, [at] 800-and-something thousand [dollars].
"Has he delivered for Carlton yet? No. [We're] comfortable that he went."
Young said McGovern left Adelaide because of issues stemming from the controversial Gold Coast pre-season camp of 2018 and issues with Crows football department staff. McGovern had previously signed a three-year contract extension with Adelaide at the end of 2017.
"Firstly, I have the greatest respect for Mark and his passion for the Crows, however I'm not sure if he has been provided the full facts on why Charlie and Mitch left the Crows," Young said.
"Those comments that Mark has made make no sense and I am very surprised that he made them. Why would Mitch stay loyal to the Crows and sign a three-year contract extension back in 2017, when he could have gone back home to Perth on an extremely lucrative contract?
"Instead Mitch chose to stay with the Crows for half the contract dollars and half the length of the contract time instead of going home to Perth.
"The reasons Mitch left the Crows was because of the camp and the Adelaide football department and that's it. Again with Charlie, it was not the money. Let's just leave it at that!"
Ricciuto said on Thursday he was "still comfortable" with his earlier comments "because I believe in it".
"Absolutely there's always other things to it. Jake wanted to be close to family and he's from Melbourne. To get a big offer, that's fine – that's understandable.
"Had McGovern had issues with the camp and problems with people in the club? Probably. That's fine."
Forward McGovern was traded to Carlton at the end of 2018 despite having two years to run on his contract. His output thus far at the Blues has been modest.
Cameron, meanwhile, was traded to the Brisbane Lions at the end of 2017 with one year left on his deal at the Crows. Cameron has since come on in leaps and bounds, named All-Australian in 2019.
"Charlie Cameron was one we didn't want to lose. One of few we weren't happy to let go," Ricciuto said on Wednesday.
"He got a very, very good contract from Brisbane, who were down the bottom of the ladder and had money in their salary cap. [We] couldn't match that.
"When you're at the top of the ladder and your salary cap is chock-a-block, you haven't got much room to move, do you? If you pay someone overs or a massive amount of money, then it means you need to lose someone else."