Hawthorn coach Sam Mitchell says he spoke to other West Coast players “more than Harley” at new defender Tom Barrass’ wedding after a picture of him sitting next to West Coast superstar Harley Reid created a stir.
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Mitchell played alongside Barrass in his single season at West Coast before retiring and moving into coaching, with their relationship helping lure the key defender to the Hawks.
It also earnt Mitchell an invite to the wedding and he denied he asked to be seated close to Reid, who is under contract with West Coast until 2026 but is yet to extend his deal.
Reid, 19, could demand one of the richest deals in AFL history when he signs his next contract, with all Melbourne clubs in particular keen to prize the Victorian out of the Eagles.
Mitchell said he was, like most people, a Reid fan, but there was nothing behind their conversation beyond a normal wedding chat.
“There was a lot of West Coast people there and I know a lot has been made of the Harley Reid photo, but there was a lot of West Coast players there and guys I played with and coached over there and I spent a lot of time with those guys,” Mitchell told AFL.com.au’s Your Coach podcast series.
“The scrutiny in Perth that goes onto Harley is difficult for the kid because there could’ve been photos of me with Jeremy McGovern or Dom Sheed or Tom Cole or Jamie Cripps or whoever else, so I think the fact that it’s just Harley all the time makes it tough.
“I’m a bit like everyone else – I love watching him play and I just hope he has a great year for West Coast.”
But Mitchell said there was a “whole range” of people at the table and the zoomed-in picture of him with Reid didn’t tell the full story.
“No, there was nothing like that. The table arrangements … if you said, ‘Who were you sitting with?’ and it wasn’t the media furore, I’d have said I sat with Will Schofield and Josh Kennedy, and Tommy Cole was probably the person closest to us,” he said.
“That was probably the main group that we spoke to, but obviously they’re of less public interest, it seems.
“There was a whole range of us sitting together and like all weddings, you end up moving around and sitting with lots of different people. I spent a little bit of time with Harley, I don’t know him well, but I spent certainly more time with other West Coast Eagles people.
“There was a lot of people there, I spent a lot of time with guys I played with and coached with and certainly spent more time with them than I did with Harley.
“Overall, he’s a very good young player and I just hope he has a really good year. I love watching him play. He’s exciting to watch and I just hope he has a good year for West Coast.”
— NCA NewsWire
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