ANALYSIS: Where did it all go wrong for Xavier Richards?

ONE MONTH after playing in an AFL Grand Final for the Sydney Swans, Xavier Richards said he was not fazed if he didn't make it on to a list.

Twenty-nine days after he voiced those thoughts he found himself out of the AFL system when his name wasn't one of the 127 called in the 2016 NAB AFL Draft or Rookie Draft.

The truth is, Richards expected a club would pick him up when he put himself up for trade in mid-October.

That not one did is one of the more mystifying occurrences in what has become the strangest of AFL years.

Even stranger is that a player would put himself out there without an established suitor.

He was 23, had spent four seasons at one of the best clubs in the country and played the final 10 games of the season including the Grand Final.

However a disconnection existed between what the market thought of Richards and what those close to Richards assumed they would.

That made his decision to request a trade from the Sydney Swans, at least if he desperately wanted to continue an AFL career, without having another club expressing a modicum of interest, poor.

It wasn't hard to ascertain his options were going to be limited.

Several AFL recruiters AFL.com.au had spoken to during the trade period had been quick to rule out the prospect of going after Richards.

Some didn't rate his talent. Others wondered at his ability to fit in. Whether that was fair or not, that was the reality for a back-up forward.

That he was in trade conversations surprised Victorian clubs, given most generally have an inkling of who might be up for grabs as they plan for the trade period.

Xavier Richards after the Swans lost the Grand Final. Picture: AFL Photos

The Swans had offered him a two-year deal at about the rate most players in his boat might get, understood to be hovering somewhere just above $150,000 a year.

It's not a princely sum for an AFL player but when you've taken four years to break into a team in a role that Kurt Tippett and Sam Reid had temporarily vacated, it's not a bad starting point.

Negotiate achievable incentives into the deal and both parties can go forward with a sense of fairness, particularly when the market isn't clamouring for your services, and the club in question has a reputation for helping players further their careers.

In reality, the take-home pay can rise quickly from the base figure.

Sources suggested however the Swans became concerned with the direction discussions were going and made their own inquiries post-season to gauge who might be the other clubs interested in Richards.

They soon discovered interest was minimal so they kept opening the door to Richards, however he could not be swayed, pointing conversations back to his manager.

That's the time nowadays when a manager steps up, utilising the depth and extent of their relationships with club officials to smooth any rough waters, explaining if necessary to the player where he sits in the market.

But Richards, uncontracted, kept going and requested a trade after the trade period had already begun.

That is his right. He said he made a late decision that he didn't want to stay in Sydney and his manager, Phil Mullen, who has been in the game a long time and has good relationships with both Sydney clubs was quoted as saying the cost of living became an issue.

It seemed strange (and late in the piece) but abnormal is the new normal during trade period these days.

By this time the Swans seemed happy to free themselves of the situation.

They didn't appear inclined to throw him in as steak knives in a trade deal with another club as they might consider with another player when few come knocking.

Mullen attended the final day of the trade period as he always does but the deadline passed without any move.

Soon after however, the Swans moved and delisted Richards after investing four years into his development.

Clubs have enough on their plate at that time of the year to get tangled up in negotiations when a player has signalled he wants out.

He trained with Essendon where he knew a few players, despite the Bombers having traded in James Stewart to fill the role he may have played and having made a commitment to re-rookie Shaun McKernan.

Surely something would happen even though he seemed indifferent to whether he career continued with an AFL club or not.

"I'm not fazed by it," Richards told News Corp. "Whatever happens, happens, I can study in Melbourne if that's the worst case and be with family and friends."

In a time when the commitment required is total, such comments, even if they represent a healthy outlook, don't convince clubs such a player is their man.

In the end no one came and Richards was overlooked, to the disbelief of most outside the system who saw scores of youngsters being added to lists who appear years away from being capable of playing in an AFL Grand Final.

Xavier Richards enjoyed a career-best season this year. Picture: AFL Photos

But it didn't surprise those within clubs.

Hopefully Richards is comfortable with where it has ended up.

Although naturally disappointed he's said to be taking some time out of the limelight and is keen to continue his studying.

While an AFL career is not the be all and end all, Richards' experience still acts as a salutary lesson to those operating within an increasingly ruthless game if they are desperate to stay within it.

The old saying that a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush now applies.

Good managers have recognised that middle-tier players can't be too cute when contracts are offered.

And nothing can be presumed, not even the weight of having a Grand Final appearance on the resume.

Because if you are among that batch of role players, the one soldier out, one soldier in philosophy applies.

In this era, players must take ownership of their careers with an understanding that times have changed for players ranked between 15 and 25 on a club's list.

Richards resurrected his career with 26 goals in five NEAFL games midway through 2016.

Perhaps he can do so again in 2017 if that is what he wants to do.