Brad Hill set to tell Fremantle he wants to be traded
Rumblings speedster Brad Hill wants to leave Fremantle at season’s end will be confirmed, with the star Docker to officially ask for a trade back to a Melbourne club, Jon Ralph writes.
Brad Hill could tell Fremantle of his decision to ask for a trade as soon as Friday but the Dockers can still cash in on his three seasons at the Dockers.
Hill has every intention of playing in Melbourne next year, with his partner to move back home over summer and the star wingman expected to join her.
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That decision could come when his management meets with Fremantle officials in the next week, although Dockers officials are already well aware of Hill’s intention to ask for a trade and return to Melbourne.
But given the huge market for Hill in Melbourne the Dockers will still profit from the deal given what they gave up three years ago.
Clubs including Carlton, St Kilda and Hawthorn who are desperate to find out Stephen Coniglio’s decision could transfer interest to Hill if they miss out on the GWS star.
Fremantle was able to secure a second-round compensation pick (No.23) when Chris Mayne left the club on a four-year deal at Collingwood.
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They traded that pick for Hill when the Hawks were desperate to secure additional selections to secure Gold Coast star Jaeger O’Meara.
Now after the second-best season of his career Hill would be clearly worth a first-round selection in a trade given he only turned 26 last month.
Carlton has a determination to trade its first-round pick (Adelaide’s No. 11 selection), with a pick around that mark likely to be required to satisfy Fremantle.
Clubs like St Kilda (pick five) and North Melbourne (pick six) would also face difficult decisions about whether to offer up early selections for Hill if he declared an interest in joining them.
Those clubs would likely secure later selections back from the Dockers in a trade but he would be an instant game-changer for clubs looking to shoot up the ladder.
Hill is the No. 1 metres gained wingman in the AFL (480 metres gained per game), is No. 1 for score assists (1.4 per game) and the No. 2 score assists wingman (6.1 per game).
His brother Stephen is a free agent, with the pair having expressed some interest in playing together at a new club next year.
Hill’s issues are based around family rather than the Dockers, having said the club’s win over Geelong last weekend was one of the best at his time in the club.
Fremantle has publicly said they will not trade him given two season left on his contract but privately are aware they will have to broker a deal.
The triple premiership player had his best season in 2014, when he amassed 23 possessions and a goal in a year where he won 449 possessions.
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Originally published as Brad Hill set to tell Fremantle he wants to be traded