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Sport Nation
How to tune into Sport NationBucks: What I would say to Jamarra Ugle-Hagan
Nathan Buckley • October 1st, 2025 2:02 pm
You know in retrospect, that's when you know if the risk is worth it or not.
Leaders will have a philosophy on how much of a risk they want to take on character and behaviour versus talent. I think the better organisations over time will always prioritise character and leadership over talent and they will be cautious, careful and considered because one drop of iodine in 10 litres of water…it infects everything.
You’ve got to keep that in mind.
If I was giving Jamarra advice; He can say anything. Anyone can say anything, but it’s what you are doing that matters.
If I was a club that was keen on him, I would have these conversations, but I would be thinking about 2027 not 2026.
I’d be saying: “We want you and we want to give you a chance to redeem your career but we need to see 12 months of demonstrated commitment to football. Going back to the well and getting your hands dirty for a period and starting again. That doesn’t happen from one conversation, and your next contract gets signed and you’re in.
“It’s a demonstration to us that you’re prepared to crawl over broken glass for your career. And that you will have gratitude for that rather than flipping from one contract to the next.”
That’s about the only way you know how committed an individual will be in this circumstance.
We’ve seen this so many times before players that get paid the same money.
We’ve seen this so many times before players that get paid the same money.
He could head down the exact same path with his next organisation. That’s no good for them and no good for him.
Si it’s a bit of hard yards and tough love early.
Whether he would agree to that is another thing.
I understand how enticing it might be. He might be recruited on a deal that doesn’t see him as a player in 2026 but earns his way back to a career.
It might be over the course of a pre-season, whole load of triggers heavily conditional contract. There’s a lot of ways to skin that cat so to speak.
But it is buyer beware absolutely. But that’s without me knowing what Jamarra’s exact circumstances are. What we hear may be wrong or may be right.
You have to deal with people as you see them.
