The Saints’ treatment of Leek Aleer is despicable, and it could come back to bite them

Graeme “Gubby” Allan bragged during an at-times abrasive six-minute media conference on Monday that St Kilda had “plenty of money to splash” and could “still go fishing”.

Allan even took umbrage at a Channel Nine reporter who asked if the Saints – who have paid well-above market rate to lure several recruits – had done enough to look after the players who were already on their list.

Three days later, St Kilda shockingly withdrew their interest in GWS defender Leek Aleer, who they had offered a four-year deal worth north of $700,000 annually. This masthead contacted St Kilda about the Aleer situation.

Aleer requested a trade to the Saints only days after the Giants lost their elimination final to Hawthorn, but now he is stranded and faces the prospect of going back to GWS with his tail between his legs.

He is holidaying in Barcelona and was understandably “livid” after waking up to the life-changing news because this deal was significantly more than he was going to make by re-signing at the Giants. GWS always wanted him to stay, and that seems the likeliest scenario after Thursday’s events.

It is despicable and shabby treatment of a 24-year-old who was well down the path of planning for a new life in Victoria, including hunting for a home.

St Kilda say they simply could not get a deal done. The Giants wanted a future second-round selection, but that would have resulted in them giving something back, on top of Aleer.

Barely an hour after this masthead revealed the Aleer trade chaos, the Saints agreed to a deal with West Coast to send that 2026 second-rounder to the Eagles for All-Australian forward Liam Ryan and a 2027 third-round pick.

They also practically gave away ruckman Max Heath to Melbourne for a 2027 fourth-rounder.

That followed St Kilda securing ex-Blues Tom De Koning and Jack Silvagni in free agency, and exchanging pick seven in this year’s draft for Gold Coast midfielder Sam Flanders.

Allan bristled at being asked if the Saints had paid enough attention to their incumbent players, yet they ended up giving star backman Callum Wilkie a pay rise and contract extension after Western Bulldogs tried to lure him.

That came after Wilkie’s annoyance at what St Kilda were willing to pay their recruits compared to his own wage.

Rivals were already fuming at the flow-on effect of the Saints’ spending, which had seen agents use those deals as the basis for contract requests for their own clients. Ultimately, St Kilda can spend their salary cap however they see fit – and only time will tell whether this strategy pays off or backfires.

But the Saints’ treatment of Aleer is very ordinary.

They first courted him last year, while he was still under contract, but the Giants defender showed loyalty and wanted to complete his deal. His goal was to hopefully become a senior regular at the club that drafted him.

Aleer was unable to do that in the early stages of this year before playing 13 of the last 14 matches, including the final against the Hawks – but St Kilda’s huge offer and the likelihood of a smoother passage to senior matches proved irresistible.

Aleer’s management, Centimeter Perfect Global, is a two-man operation and certainly not a goliath akin to Connors Sports or TGI Sport.

Industry figures have already wondered aloud whether the Saints would pull the same stunt if Aleer was represented by one of the bigger agencies. Everyone knows the answer.

Another of Centimeter Perfect Global’s clients is St Kilda’s promising defender Alix Tauru. That will be a fun reunion between the parties when they eventually discuss Tauru’s extension.

The Saints have won a single premiership in a mostly mediocre history and, like North Melbourne, have struggled to attract big-name recruits in the past.

Behind Allan, Stephen Silvagni and Simon Dalrymple, they have hyper-aggressively set about changing that with outrageous spending, after using first-round picks on Mattaes Phillipou, Darcy Wilson, Lance Collard, Tobie Travaglia and Tauru over the past three years.

St Kilda are clearly adopting a ruthless approach, and their fans undoubtedly won’t care if it leads them to a drought-busting premiership.

But actions like the Aleer backflip will make it easier not to feel sorry for them if that bid fails.

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