Fuming Geelong officials and Gary Ablett's management have threatened the Gold Coast Football Club with legal action after an image of the Cats' superstar wearing the Gold Coast colors had been used to attract members to the new AFL club.

Ablett continues to be tempted by a multi-million dollar offer from the fledgling Gold Coast club. On Monday, a computer-generated image of him was splashed across the Gold Coast Bulletin newspaper wearing the club's red and gold stripe.

Ablett's image was accompanied by the slogan "dare to dream" - which the Gold Coast clearly is doing as it attempts to lure the game's best player in time for its AFL debut next season.

In a terse statement, Cats chief executive Brian Cook said:

"The advertisement is clearly an ad for Gold Coast football club, pushing for supporters to become members and directing readers to the official website of the Gold Coast football club," he said.

"The advertisement uses the intellectual property of Gary Ablett without his permission.

"We look forward to the AFL, the AFLPA and IMG, Gary's management company, taking the appropriate action following this clear contravention of the rules."

Ablett's manager Liam Pickering wasn't immediately available for comment.

Last night, though, the Gold Coast franchise denied any knowledge of the poster, saying it was purely an editorial initiative of the Gold Coast Bulletin. ''It was not generated by the Gold Coast Football Club, it was not paid for by the Gold Coast Football Club and the Gold Coast Football Club was not asked to participate in its publication,'' said club chief executive Travis Auld.

Auld said he had contacted Cook to explain the situation this afternoon.

The AFL Players Association chief executive Matt Finnis said tonight the use of Ablett's image in the poster had not been approved by the player or his management. Finnis said the association would be seeking answers as to how this breach of Ablett's rights occurred. ''The AFLPA will vigorously protect the intellectual rights of all AFL players,'' he said.

Cats president Frank Costa had earlier told backpagelead.com.au the club had little comment to make in wake of Ablett pleading for his privacy in a Sunday newspaper column while he weighs up the offers from the two clubs.

"The club has decided we won't go any further into it," he said.

"Yesterday in the Sunday Herald Sun there was an article from Gary himself explaining where he sits and he doesn't want to have any more discussion on it.

"The club has decided it's been done to death a million times. We are just not going to react to it all."

Ablett wrote on Sunday that he would "walk away from this game before I'd let myself be hurried into making a decision".

He said the decision would be based on "what makes me happy and what I really want in my life".

The Cats are desperate to know what Ablett's plans are for several issues await if he decides to join brother Nathan - and perhaps his father, Gary Snr - up north.

At the top of the Cats' list will be seeking compensation under the AFL's list establishment rules.

As it stands, if he was to leave Ablett would almost certainly be graded a premium first-round player, but the Cats will be better off waiting until at least the 2012 national draft - when priority selections for the Gold Coast and Greater Western Sydney end - before they use their compensatory pick from the AFL.

But AFL boss Andrew Demetriou has now flagged a review of the compensation picks formula, claiming some clubs had declared the system unfair.

Gold Coast and Greater Western Sydney can poach one uncontracted player from each team, with clubs receiving a pick in return.

Players will be graded at five different draft levels - first round, end of first round, second round, end of second round and third round.

Such is the concern about the short-term future of Richmond and Melbourne - especially in lieu of their lame Round 1 efforts - that four-time premiership coach Leigh Matthews suggested on the AFL's own website that there be a moratorium on their players.

But a member of the working party who helped to formulate the list establishment rules for the two new clubs says Matthews' stance was considered but ultimately rejected by the 14-man panel chaired by the AFL's legal and business affairs general manager Andrew Dillon.

The official, who did not wish to be named, said clubs on the cusp of a premiership could also argue they would be as disadvantaged by losing a key player as a team at the foot of the ladder.

"What's worse? Losing a player when a club is rebuilding or when a club is about to win a premiership?" he said.

"If you think you can win a grand final next year, and you lost a major player, is that as huge a loss as a team that finishes bottom.

"It's hard one to judge who is the worst affected.

"If you try and introduce two new clubs, where are you going to get your players from?

The club official said the "compensation model was pretty good" and said the outstanding debut of former VFL player Michael Barlow, now with Fremantle, showed fresh talent was always available for teams who lost players.