Dodd believes Perth players have every right to be angry

Former Perth attacker Travis Dodd says if he was still a Glory player he would be 'gutted' by the salary cap drama and 'angry and disappointed' at the club for the way the team's season has been left in tatters.

Perth Glory Travis Dodd

Travis Dodd in action for Perth Glory in 2013 Source: Getty Images Asia Pacific

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Dodd told The World Game he had talked to some current Glory players who were 'gutted' by what has happened, with the club being kicked out of the finals for cheating the salary cap.

But he urged them to not make rash decisions on their futures based on anger and emotion and that any decision to try to opt out of their contracts should be made with a clear head.

"It would be easy for the players to turn around and say 'stuff this', because they've done nothing wrong," Dodd said. "But they need to ensure that if they leave the club it's going to be of benefit to them. A decision in the heat of the moment may not be beneficial.

"They should avoid knee-jerk reactions. There has been talk from the players' union that players may have the option of terminating their contracts, but whether or not players go that far will be interesting to see.

"I'm not sure if it's 100 per cent that the option to get out of contracts is going to be available, but if it was me I would be getting all the facts and considering what options you might have before you think about doing something like that.

"Don't make a decision while you're angry and terminate a contract without really thinking about what the options are for you."

Dodd spent the bulk of his A-League career at Adelaide United before transferring to Perth for his last couple of seasons. He suffered a major knee injury two years ago and after 12 months out of the game his A-League career ended at the age of 34.

The former star attacker said it would be enormously difficult for the Perth players to come to terms with doing all the hard work to put the team in a commanding position only for it all to go down the drain because of something that was out of their control.

"I am close to a few of the players and they are gutted. It would be impossible for them not to be," Dodd said.

"I would be gutted as well, but there's nothing they can do to affect the outcome now.

"If I was in that situation as a player, knowing that I've put in all through the pre-season and done all the hard work through the season proper, and it's through no fault of mine that I find myself in this situation, I would be angry and disappointed with the club.

"Players go in there and negotiate contracts. It's not their responsibility to worry about the salary cap or anything like that, it's their job to do the best for themselves and their families.

"But now all of their hard work over the last eight months or however long it's been, has gone up in smoke.

"It doesn't only affect them, either. It affects the club in terms of potential memberships and sponsorships and now they've got a lot of groundwork to do to win back the trust of fans, sponsors and also the playing group after what has happened.

"You would have to be angry if you were a player. I would most definitely be angry. Everything was going great up until two months ago and they were thinking about finals and home finals and winning championships and playing in the Asian Champions League, but now it's all gone."

Asked if he was feeling things personally, as a former Perth player, Dodd replied: "I still have friends at the club and I'm mainly disappointed for them.

"I would be more angry if I was still a current player, but I'm disappointed for them to have a great season taken away from them the way it has been.

"I was at Adelaide for six years and captain for two-and-a-half years there, so that is where I played the majority of my career and there is always a soft spot there. I was at Perth for a short time, but the club grows on you.

"The last year was difficult for me, doing rehab. Perth is home to me, it's where I live with my family. I wouldn't say I support one club more than the other out of Adelaide and Perth. I go to every Perth game in a working capacity for ABC radio."

Dodd said he was impressed by how the Glory players had not come out bad-mouthing the club.

"The players have handled it as well as can be," he said. "They could have rung someone in the media and had a pop at the club, but they're professional about it.

"I think that shows the strength of the playing group. They're sticking together as a group in an attempt to not disrupt things any more than they have been disrupted.

"The players owe it to themselves now to play for pride of performance in the last two rounds and try to do as well as they can. I know if I was a player I'd want to go out and show we're a quality side and finish the season off strongly."


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5 min read
Published 19 April 2015 1:27pm
By Greg Prichard

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