Collingwood superstar Nick Daicos won’t rule out a move to Tasmania in the future, if the Devils enter the AFL as planned.
The Devils – who were granted a licence to become the AFL’s 19th team on the condition a new, roofed stadium is built for the team to play at – are due to come into the competition for the 2028 season.
Collingwood superstar Nick Daicos.Credit: Eddie Jim
But, as reported by this masthead, the 18 clubs could vote to delay the team’s arrival by 12 months later this year, given recent political upheaval in the Apple Isle that has left the team’s new stadium at risk of being mothballed.
Daicos said he would be open to offers when his contract expires at the end of 2029, when he will be a restricted free agent.
“I’d never rule anything out,” Daicos, who was launching a new partnership with Elite Supplements, told this masthead on Wednesday.
“It’s hard to picture, obviously, it’s so far away – but I’m very happy at Collingwood now.”
Daicos’ Pies are well clear at the top of the table.Credit: Eddie Jim
Daicos is no stranger to Tasmania’s inaugural recruitment boss, Derek Hine. The former Collingwood list manager and his recruiting team will be armed with around $3 million of sign-on money over the team’s first three years, according to two industry sources who wished to remain anonymous.
That would mean players – such as Daicos – could be paid hundreds of thousands of dollars outside the salary cap to join the Devils.
“It hasn’t crossed my mind that much. Tassie are a little while away, Hine has gone there which is great for him and obviously, his connection at Collingwood,” Daicos said. “I’m sure he’s scouting some players that he wants, but I’m fully fixated on staying at Collingwood for now and this year, more importantly.”
If he were to head to Tasmania to join the expansion team, the son of Pies great Peter would follow the template set by another midfield superstar, Gary Ablett jnr, who has become a friend and mentor of Daicos’.
Also the son of an AFL great, who played at the same club as his famous father, Ablett sent the football world into a frenzy in 2010 when he left Geelong to be the franchise player and the big-name signing at the newly formed Gold Coast Suns.
Daicos said he was in regular contact with Ablett.
“I’ve picked his brain about several things, not so much Tasmania – but he has talked to me about his move to Gold Coast and evolving as a player,” Daicos said.
“He’s such a great person and someone that I have leaned on in the past for his football knowledge, he’s experienced so much.”
For now, Daicos says he is focused on the 2025 season, as his Magpies are well-placed for another premiership push. A game-and-a-half clear of the second-placed Lions with a game in hand, with a home game against cellar dwellers West Coast on Saturday night, the Magpies are set to be 10 points clear of the reigning premiers come Sunday morning.
Collingwood have defied pre-season expectations to become the hunted, but teams are also going after Daicos individually.
He was reluctant to talk in detail about being tagged, and his own performances – instead praising his teammates for their physical and emotional support.
“We’re really happy with that start to the season and just contributing on a weekly basis, that’s my aim,” Daicos said.
“Some weeks I contribute more than others, but we’re going really well as a team, and we’re not complacent – we want to keep moving forward and understand that teams are going to come after us, and we are going to have to keep getting better and I think we are up for that challenge.”
He referenced last weekend’s battle with St Kilda’s Marcus Windhager, and said how the team responds to a tough tag can be what helps a group unite.
“Windhager has done some great jobs this year and I had him on the weekend. I knew it was going to be a tougher day and the boys were great with helping me out and laying some blocks, and ultimately we won, which is the main thing,” Daicos said.
“It really unites our group. There was that moment in 2023 when Sydney came after me a bit and half the team was wrestling on the ground with Ryan Clarke. We find it really unites us as a team, and we grow stronger from it.
“The more experiences you have, the better you get a dealing with it. We have a lot of players who get attention from the opposition. So it’s not just me we support – we support all our players.”
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