The story appears on

Page A16

October 23, 2018

GET this page in PDF

Free for subscribers

View shopping cart

Related News

Home » Sports

Bolt deal is talk of A-League

OLYMPIC sprint champion Usain Bolt managed to upstage the first weekend of Australia’s A-League season without kicking a ball after his agent said he had been offered a professional contract by the Central Coast Mariners.

The 32-year-old Jamaican has been on trial with the Gosford-based club since August as he attempts to make an audacious switch to a second professional sport after one of the most decorated careers in track and field.

The Mariners yesterday were sticking to their line from last week that his “indefinite” trial continues as do negotiations between the club and Bolt.

Club manager Mike Mulvey said after the club’s season-opening 1-1 draw with Brisbane Roar on Sunday he knew nothing about any contract, even if he admitted such matters would be well above his “pay grade.”

The former Manchester United trainee has said in the past that he thinks it might be until next year that Bolt was fit enough to make a proper call on, and questioned on Sunday whether he could displace any of the club’s front three.

Questions will always be asked about whether signing Bolt was more about public relations than footballing prowess and, despite two goals in one preseason friendly, it is fair to say that his performances for the Mariners have not been overly impressive.

Several former players and coaches, including former Australia boss Ange Postecoglou, have expressed doubts about whether the sprint champion could make the switch.

The public relations value of having Bolt as a squad player might prove tempting to a smaller club, however, as Maltese outfit Valletta FC proved last week when it made the Jamaican an offer of a two-year contract that he turned down.

Football Federation Australia has made it clear that the “marquee” money that has in the past helped Australian clubs lure the likes of Alessandro Del Piero to the A-League will not be available to sign Bolt.

That means any contract from the Mariners, whose average home crowd last season was just over 7,000, is unlikely to be highly lucrative.




 

Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.

沪公网安备 31010602000204号

Email this to your friend