The Buzz: The inside story of how Brett Goodes realised his unlikely AFL dream Brett Goodes will make his AFL debut for the Western Bulldogs on Saturday. WHEN Brett Goodes makes his debut on Saturday night, the football world will wonder at this most unlikely feel-good story. A 29-year-old brother of an AFL superstar plucked from his job as a Bulldogs welfare manager to lock down a spot in defence for the club. They would make movies about in America: in fact, they have - think Blindside, or Mark Wahlberg as Philadelphia Eagle Vince Papale in Invincible. Little-known details of his belated elevation to the big time reveal the Goodes story loses little in the comparison. Goodes survived battles against established players Matthew Bate and Brent Prismall, the club's hesitancy in taking a 29-year-old while in a rebuilding phase, and a nerve-racking AFL draft in which he watched on knowing precisely who was ahead of him in the Dogs' estimation. He sat at home knowing if Josh Prudden was not taken by the Dogs at pick No.50 they would snare the Murray Bushrangers midfielder at pick 71. There would be no room for a rookie pick for Goodes. Even if things turned out, Goodes would be taking a pay cut from his club role and VFL wages, down to the minimum rookie wage of $49,200, plus match payments. He would become a listed AFL player only at December's rookie draft, with the seed of a dream sown just weeks earlier, not in Footscray, but London. Bulldogs coach Brendan McCartney knocked Goodes off his metaphorical feet after the club's exhibition game against Port Adelaide. "Have you maybe thought about having a run around with us?" he asked. Back in Melbourne, the coach pulled list manager Jason McCartney aside and let him in on the secret. Ex-Kangaroo star McCartney takes up the tale. "Pretty much on the first day back Macca grabbed me and had a quiet word about what he had said to Goodesy over there," McCartney says. He was so well respected by the players, and we know he could also play the game. Macca said, 'I will get you to train', and he just blossomed. We didn't know how he would hold up, but from day dot he started running with the midfield group, and we found out he had really good endurance. He is tough and competitive and a great kick of the footy. I had watched him a lot during the year watching our young guys play at Willy, but to be honest I thought he was just good for that level. But he has dropped 5kg (others say 8kg) and what played into our hands was our list profile. The Bulldogs have confirmed Brett Goodes is locked in a race with Brent Prismall for a fairytale shot at the AFL. Eight of the 10 players brought in during the 2011 draft period were kids, and another five selections from the 2012 national draft were babies. There were still the established challengers, including Melbourne's Bate and Essendon's Prismall. One by one Bate and Prismall tested themselves at Whitten Oval, both seasoned players, and younger. "Matty Bate trained with us, and then Pris came, having knocked back a deal with Port Adelaide, so they were quality characters and great footballers," McCartney says. But the longer Brett trained, the stronger he got. He beat all comers. The other guys trained well, but he just shone out. Goodes might have felt he had done enough, but then another roadblock - aggressive midfielder Ed Lower decided against taking Fremantle's one-year deal. Lower joined the Dogs as a free agent, and there was one fewer spot available for Goodes. The Bulldogs had 50 players on their draft wishlist. If any one of them was still available at pick No.71, Goodes was back to the VFL. "I remember ringing him from the Gold Coast on the night of the draft and talking him through the possible scenarios," says McCartney. He had a couple of names he wrote down and he knew if he heard them early and not late, he was still in the frame. Click HERE for a better chat experience Prudden was there at pick 50 and the Bulldogs pounced, Goodes breathed a sigh of relief back home on the couch in Melbourne, and weeks later - after the Herald Sun broke news of the impending coup - he was officially a Western Bulldog. "We threw absolutely everything at him," McCartney says. Sometimes you feel like a hard bastard, because it's like coaching your son. Maybe you go harder on them, because you don't want to give them favours, but he has come through with flying colours. All the way through we kept him across the scenarios, including the financial situation, but he had followed this dream for so long. He wasn't going to give up. THIS is how much former Richmond forward Nathan Brown rates new Richmond captain Trent Cotchin: "When his career is finished, people will talk about him being one of the greats of all time," he tells the Buzz. That's how highly I regard him. Having been a player in the last 30 years, there is no better player than Cotchin. He is a freak. I have never seen him lose a one-on-one contest. He never goes to ground, he picks the ball up in contested situation and still puts distance on his opponent, and he is a great person. Former Carlton onballer Nick Stevens, who worked at Richmond in 2011, believes Cotchin can win multiple Brownlow Medals given his level of consistency. That makes for maximum leverage when it comes to negotiating Cotchin's contract, as ESP founder and boss Craig Kelly is about to do. Yet incoming footy boss Dan Richardson must also secure Jack Riewoldt, with talks on his new long-term deal imminent. All of raises interesting questions that the Tigers must confront in coming months. Who is the better player? Cotchin. Without question, as his second placing in the Brownlow Medal proves. But which player would Richmond miss more if they went down in Round 1? And how does that relate to the size of the contracts Richmond will reward them with? It is easy to argue that Richmond would still be a finals contender even if Cotchin was sidelined this year. Yes, it would leave a gaping hole in the midfield which all of Brett Deledio, Shane Tuck, Nathan Foley, Shaun Grigg, Shane Edwards, Chris Knights, Reece Conca, Brandon Ellis, Chris Newman and Co would try to fill. Richmond captain Trent Cotchin has moved up Tredrea's list to the number three spot. Picture: Darrian Traynor. But Riewoldt? He goes down, the Tigers are in freefall. No forward line of Aaron Edwards, Tyrone Vickery and Luke McGuane (with Ben Griffiths thrown forward too) gets it done at AFL level, as hard as that quartet would try. And that is why it is such a significant challenge for Richmond to recontract that pair, plus out-of-contract midfielder Dustin Martin. Martin needs to show he can behave before he gets his deal, but you can guarantee he will fire this season given he is off contract and has the world watching his every off-field move. Yet you get the feeling Riewoldt might explode too. He has 215 goals, an All-Australian spot, an All-Australian nomination, and two Coleman Medals in the past three years despite playing the last two seasons with considerable injuries. If all of Cotchin, Riewoldt and Martin play to expectations, Richmond makes the finals. But the big forwards make the big bucks. Richmond finally has the star-studded talent to push for finals, but it is also likely to have the wage bill to go with it. Wouldn't that 9.8 per cent cost of living allowance some rival sides are handed come in handy now? Jack Riewoldt makes a point at Richmond training. WHY GAZ WON'T COME HOME GARY Ablett has twice in recent months refused to discount the possibility of returning to Geelong at some stage. It is a romantic notion which just won't die. But those who know Ablett well just don't believe it will happen. Ablett turns 29 in May, so would be 32 in his first year back at Geelong. But there are two real reasons why he is at massive odds to return. Firstly, the Gold Coast should by then be playing regular finals, and hopefully pushing into the premiership window. But, just as importantly, almost all of the friends who now represent a lure for Ablett to play with again will be retired by 2016. The likes of Steve Johnson, Corey Enright, James Kelly, Jimmy Bartel and more will have either moved on or be on their last legs as players. That isn't to say that Geelong won't still be vying for a flag, but the pull of home won't be anywhere near as strong. Gold Coast captain Gary Ablett is a lock for your SuperCoach team. Just on Ablett, get ready for another scintillating season for the reigning AFL MVP. Gold Coast officials were in awe of his performance late last year as he navigated a complicated breakup with partner Lauren Phillips. The details will remain private, but suffice to say they believe Ablett was clearly distracted and battling to come to grips with the end of that relationship. Yet he went out and blew away the competition on a weekly basis. Now both Ablett and Phillips have moved on. With a clear head and an improving side around him, a fifth MVP award is a real possibility. PUT BOUTIQUE STADIUM IN BIN The AFL says it wants a third boutique stadium for Melbourne, even if it costs $150 million to revamp Punt Road or Visy Park. Yet on the same day it refuses to cover some of the costs of cricket's move to the Junction Oval, even though that figure could be as little as $3 million. Take it as read - a third stadium in Melbourne just won't happen. Even the AFL privately admits that despite the posturing that comes with negotiations over the sale of Etihad Stadium, a boutique stadium makes no economic sense. Why would you spend $150 million on a rival stadium when you inherit Etihad Stadium for a dollar in 2015? All it does is lose you money as the ground manager from 2025 on. And it doesn't make sense when you can play some of those spare games at Simonds Stadium, with the team that relocates a game or two making $700K plus. The clubs are toeing the party line, agreeing that it might be nice to inject huge amounts of money into Visy Park or Punt Rd. Yet a key figure close to negotiations said described the likelihood of it happening as "1000 to one." The AFL wants Etihad Stadium now, and at the right price. But this issue only rears its ugly head when the AFL is in full negotiation mode, then seems to evaporate when the league gets what it wants. Geelong vs Western Bulldogs at Simonds Stadium. Adam Cooney clears out of the middle Picture: Michael Klein Source: HWT Image Library COONEY IS BACK Everyone wins if Adam Cooney returns to his form of old - the Bulldogs, the fans, and the player himself given he becomes a restricted free agent this year. Cooney and the club have agreed to put off contract talks at least until the halfway mark of the season given his injury troubles. At times it seemed he wouldn't even get to the end of his latest contract given his battles with a patella injury. But Cooney's new off-season will hopefully give the 27-year-old longevity in the game, and the options that flow from that. Does that mean he devotes himself as a one-club player? Hopefully. Or maybe the club and player realise that given he might have just two more years in the game, they come to an agreement to trade him or take the compensation pick that would flow from moving as a free agent? Don't totally discount that possibility. It worked for Brian Lake because of his own determination to move on, and the Dogs have already shown themselves to be canny list managers not afraid of bold decisions.