Muller raised eyebrows when he said “the way Shaun plays for us probably didn’t suit our game plan,” when asked about the impact of Mannagh’s decision to join rival club Lavington.

Mannagh played five matches for North Albury last season when free of VFL commitments with Richmond and is likely to play a similar number for Lavington this year.

“North Albury won six matches last year and I played in four of them – so reading between the lines, you can take what you want from that,” Mannagh said.

“What was said in the paper about me not suiting their game plan, personally I thought was a bit off the mark.

“Isaac is entitled to his opinion but I thought I gave good service to the club over the four or five years I was there and think most of the committee, players and supporters would agree with me.

“I thought I did everything I could when available and was pretty happy with my form considering I got tagged every week but I realise some people have got different opinions on that.”

Mannagh said he was happy to remain at Bunton Park this season before contract negotiations broke down and best mate Lachie Taylor-Nugent departed for Albury.

“Initially we wanted to remain at North Albury but without going into too much detail we felt unappreciated, disappointed and like we were being pushed out the door,” Mannagh said.

“So I decided to explore my other options and obviously it was enticing to join Lavington with the chance to play alongside my brother, Cody, and one of my best mates, Connor Meredith, who is coming back as well.

“I initially trained with Lavington when I was a kid coming into town from Walla and have enormous respect for some of their seniors players like James Saker and Luke Garland.”

Mannagh, 21, is entering his third season with Richmond after playing eight games in his debut season including the grand final. He played 13 matches last season and is looking to play at least 15 matches this year.

North Albury and Lavington meet in the season opener on March 30 with Mannagh likely to play.