Rivers of extra dollars dry up

THE AFL’s northern rivers of gold have evaporated, with only a modest AFL ambassadorship available to Tom Lynch if he stays at Gold Coast.

Lynch’s pay packet already hovers around $1 million at the Gold Coast, with the AFL adamant it would only consider a deal after he re-signed.

But the extent of the league’s crackdown on ambassadorships has emerged, with Lynch able to access as little as $50,000 from the league.

Gold Coast’s Gary Ablett was paid around that figure as an AFLQ ambassador during his time up north. He also had a lucrative deal with Gatorade, also an AFL sponsor, but it was not dependent on him playing with Gold Coast.

Brisbane’s Dayne Zorko receives around $25,000 as an AFL multicultural ambassador, while Eric Hipwood accepts around $15,000 as an Auskick ambassador.

The Suns confirmed yesterday they have no multicultural or Auskick ambassadors paid for by the league. The league knocked on the head a Brisbane request for Luke Hodge to be an AFL ambassador in Queensland earlier this year.

It is a significant change for the AFL, which spent millions paying code-hoppers Karmichael Hunt and Israel Folau.

News Corp understands former AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou spoke with the Giants mid-year to discuss ambassadorships when Lance Franklin was slated to move to GWS.

Restricted free agent Lynch has made it clear that he will wait until mid-season as he assesses Gold Coast’s progress. But unlike Dustin Martin, his decision will not be based on accessing bigger deals from Victorian clubs.

Gold Coast has the salary cap to offer him a lucrative deal of up to seven years, having already paid him a huge wage this season. Hawthorn and Richmond both believe they are contenders for his services, with Collingwood also interested in the star forward.