First Nixon client jumps ship
IS THERE anyone out there that hasn't had their fill of the Ricky Nixon-teenage girl saga?

The Age and Herald Sun obviously think so. Both ran in-depth news features tracking Nixon's rise and looming fall as one of football's most influential off-field figures.

In the Herald Sun's sports pages, columnist Patrick Carlyon lampoons Nixon's public response to the saga this week, while Sport Confidential tells how the Irish media has gleefully reported the troubles that have befallen the man who has poached some of their best Gaelic football talent.

Meanwhile, The Age's sports section, ran a column by former Hawthorn player Nick Holland that described the AFL Players' Association agents board's failure to suspend Nixon while the girl's allegations against him are investigated as "extraordinary".

At least, The Age added some news, with Caroline Wilson reporting young Geelong forward Mitch Brown had become the first of Nixon's current clients to announce he was seeking a new manager in the wake of the scandal. Wilson also added several players managed by Nixon had reported receiving approaches from other agents seeking their business, behaviour AFLPA CEO Matt Finnis said was "premature, opportunistic and potentially unlawful".  

Magpies the off-field benchmark too
In a report by The Age on the finances of all 10 Victorian clubs, Collingwood was shown to have generated total revenue of $75 million in 2010, remarkably leaving traditional powerhouse rivals Essendon and Carlton in theie wake, by $30 million and $40 million respectively. The competition's lowest revenue-earners, North Melbourne, generated nearly $50 million less.

North chairman James Brayshaw and his Essendon counterpart David Evans told The Age about the pressures smaller clubs faced in trying to compete against cashed-up clubs like Collingwood.

But outgoing Geelong president Frank Costa dropped a bombshell, saying he expected the AFL would stop subsidising struggling clubs soon after GWS's entry to the competition in 2012, with the "first team to fall over" likely to be relocated to Tasmania.

Costa's comments are at odds with AFL CEO Andrew Demetriou's consistent recent message that the AFL is committed to 10 clubs in Victoria.

However, we should not forget Tasmania remains desperately keen for its own AFL club. Remember, Brayshaw told North's annual general meeting in February the club's negotiations to play seven home games in Tasmania from this year had fallen down because it had indicated it was not prepared to relocate in the future. 

All bets are off for AFLPA and media?
Not sure what the mug punters in the ranks of the AFLPA and media will make of The Age's report on Saturday the AFL is considering banning player agents, AFLPA staff and accredited media from betting on AFL matches.

The AFL is determined to avoid betting scandals like the one dogging the NRL that has implicated player agents and Canterbury Bulldogs player Ryan Tandy.

As such, AFL football operations manager Adrian Anderson told The Age the AFL's "more pressing" priority was to ban player agents from betting, a proposal put to the AFLPA agents board on Thursday. 

However, Anderson confirmed AFLPA staff and accredited media were also in the AFL's crosshairs.

Oh well, we'll always have the nags.

Tigers want to stay home in future
Richmond is determined to shore up its finances so it eventually does not need to relocate any home games and can field its own VFL side, CEO Brendon Gale told the Herald Sun.

Gale said playing interstate home games, like Richmond will do twice this year (against Port Adelaide in Darwin and the Gold Coast at Carrara), was lucrative and helped build the Tigers' presence nationally, but meant the club conceded the home ground advantage it would have enjoyed in Melbourne.

Gale also said recent history showed clubs that fielded their own VFL sides were "more likely to be successful". Three of the past premierships have been won by sides with their own VFL sides - Geelong (2007 and 2009) and Collingwood (2010).

Gale said ideally a Richmond VFL side would play its home games at a redeveloped Punt Road Oval.

In short
The Herald Sun profiles Richmond indigenous forward Troy Taylor and the off-field troubles that almost stopped him from returning to Punt Road this year.

Richmond great Kevin Bartlett said he would be "surprised" if GWS didn't sign one of the Brisbane Lions' three uncontracted West Australian youngsters - Mitch Clark, Daniel Rich and Daniel Leuenberger - echoing former Tigers coach Terry Wallace's prediction on Wednesday, the Courier Mail reports.

Western Bulldogs Callan Ward and Port Adelaide's Alipate Carlile and Danyle Pearce are believed to have been added to GWS' growing player hitlist, the Herald Sun reports.

Following reports on Friday AFL CEO Andrew Demetriou earned $2.2 million last year, Hawthorn president Jeff Kennett said Demetriou deserved to earn more than the game's top players, while Demetriou said he was happy for his salary to be made public, the Herald Sun reports.

Emerging North Melbourne midfielder Cruize Garlett is working hard to build the endurance base he needs to complement his one-touch ball-handling, the Herald Sun reports.

Although recruiters continue to search far and wide for new player hunting grounds, Geelong's side has a remarkable local flavour, with 11 of the 47 players on its 2011 list from Geelong's VFL team or TAC Cup side Geelong Falcons, The Age reports.

Irish key position prospect Tommy Walsh remains determined to succeed in the AFL and regards his first appearance at senior level, in round one of the NAB Cup against Essendon and the Brisbane Lions last Friday, as "a starting point", The Age reports.

The views in this story are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL