Bartel in no rush over future

wouldn’t be prepared to do.

Bartel will soon sit down again with Geelong’s chiefs to gauge where he sits in their plans before making a call.

His decision also rests on his commitment to complete another full pre-season, at 33 years of age, to get himself ready for next year.

“I’m just taking my time, really,” he told SEN.

“I don’t think you should make a decision straight off the type of game we had on Friday night. You want to make a clear decision and make it based on the year in its entirety.

“I want to sit down with the coaches and the relevant people at the club and say ‘where would I fit in and would I be a part of your plans?’

“Then you also have to make up your mind. Do I want to be running laps of an oval in late January when it’s 40 degrees?

“There’s a bit to think about, which I’ll take my time over the next week or so to decide.”

Bartel played 22 of Geelong’s 24 games this year and averaged 21.6 disposals per game, while he also booted 11 goals as a player capable of playing at halfback, up forward and through the midfield.

He proved in the thrilling qualifying final win over Hawthorn, with a clutch play to set up the matchwinning goal, that he still has something to offer as the Cats push for a premiership.

Respected recruiter Gary Buckenara says there’s no doubt Geelong should convince Bartel to play on.

“Bartel is a fabric player. He’s more of a fabric player than the likes of Steve Johnson, Paul Chapman and James Kelly, who have been let go by Chris Scott and Geelong,” he wrote in an exclusive column for the Herald Sun.

“I would keep Bartel, for sure. Yes, he’s lost a bit of pace but sometimes when you let someone like him go and do the wrong thing by him in terms of list management — there’s a balance you must consider when you’re trying to do the right thing by your club and the list and also the right thing by the player — you might be losing the mojo.

“He is such a brilliant clubman . . . the type of guy you want to do the right thing by but that might be managing him through the season, not necessarily in the VFL, but by resting him.

“He doesn’t need to play every game and may not need to as younger players are given a taste of senior footy.”