While there has been no confirmation that Richmond superstar Dustin Martin will retire come season’s end, the speculation continues to grow after coach Adem Yze’s latest comments.
Yze declared that Martin “would struggle” to play in their Sunday clash against Carlton at the MCG, followed by a long plane trip to Western Australia to take on Fremantle six days later.
Martin, who just turned 33, has remained coy on what next season looks like, as his mega nine-year contract comes to an end with no extension set in stone.
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With a plethora of short turnarounds between games for the back half of their season, Yze has now admitted that Martin won’t be picked for all of those matches.
“We’ll sit down with him and work out a plan,” Yze said on Thursday.
It shouldn’t come as too much of a shock, though, with Martin already rested the week before his 300th match against Hawthorn, and also earlier in the season.
“He’s going to be one of those players that we’ve got to decide with (because) we’re starting to prepare for eight-day breaks and six-day breaks,” Yze said.
“If he plays this weekend there will be a high risk that he might not be able to play against Freo.
“So we’ll sit down and try to map out a plan for a lot of those older guys, and he’ll be one of those.”
In Martin’s 300th at the MCG in round 14, Richmond went down by 48 points at the hands of Hawthorn, with the triple premiership champion taking extra time to complete a lap of honour around the MCG to thank the Tigers faithful.
In front of over 92,000 fans, the 2017 Brownlow Medallist spoke post-match and shut down suggestions that it was his final match.
“Yeah mate, freshen up for the bye and see how we go,” he said at the time.
While there is little doubt that Martin will play again in 2024, there is still cloud around where he will be come 2025.
With the Tigers admittedly beginning a rebuild, there may not be room for the ageing champion when a new season arrives.
The Tigers sit seventh on the ladder with a 2-12 record.