AFL trade: All the big news, deals to be done as Wednesday deadline nears
Adrian Dodoro has been open for business in his last trade/free agency period. But are the Bombers getting enough bang for their buck?
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There’s only three more sleeps until the final day of the trade period and so much is still to play out.
Lachie Schultz, Jack Gunston, Xavier Duursma and Esava Ratugolea are just some of the names to request moves and are yet to get to their preferred home.
Our experts evaluate the AFL trade landscape as Wednesday night’s deadline looms.
Will the Esava Ratugolea trade be the one that goes closest to the wire and will the Cats blink?
Geelong was happy to take the Ollie Henry trade all the way to the final seconds last year. After a week of negotiations, it seems little progress has been made this year on Esava Ratugolea getting his wish granted to move to Port Adelaide. The Cats pushed back on an offer of pick 24 for Ratugolea and instead asked for Ollie Lord, which was quickly shot down. Last year Cats list boss Andrew Mackie proved he was happy to stare a rival down as the clock ticked, but with so much more to get done, can the Power really afford to add any more to their best offer?
Is Harley Reid more likely to wear West Coast, North Melbourne or even different colours in 2024?
There is no reason why the “Race for Reid” can’t carry on right until draft night, given picks can be traded then. The Eagles have so far been staunch in asking for a hefty price in return for the most touted No.1 choice in years. North Melbourne has five picks inside the top 18, including selections two and three, so if the Roos want him badly enough, they can get a deal done. Melbourne has picks six, 11 and its future first-rounder so it appears to have the best hand to try to join North in the conversation. It makes so much sense for the Eagles to move back from one to two and get a bonus first-round choice for their trouble. It’s hard to see West Coast going any other way than Reid if they still have the top choice on draft night.
Can Xavier Duursma make it a red and black acquisition quaddie? And have the Bombers paid overs for their trade/free agency pick-ups?
Adrian Dodoro has been open for business in his last trade/free agency period in the driver’s seat. He has a plan to add Xavier Duursma to Essendon’s October haul of Ben McKay, Jade Gresham and Todd Goldstein. Those close to the negotiations believe it will get done, with a straight swap for Brandon Zerk-Thatcher (plus a swap of picks) likely. The question mark is whether the Dons have dished out too much cash for McKay and Gresham? Both are solid players who need to raise the bar to prove value for money. McKay is on a deal just under $800,000 per season, while Gresham’s four-year contract is around $700,000 annually. You have to pay plenty to bring targeted players into your team these days, but Bomber fans will want a return on investment almost immediately.
Are the Crows any chance of securing Harrison Petty or will the Demons remain steadfast in refusing to discuss it?
The Demons have no intention of letting swingman Petty go next season, despite the Crows backing up the truck. What 23-year-old wouldn’t be tempted by a Crows offer of around $800,000 per season, with a first-year sweetener of $1.2 million! Petty was initially open to a move, but a meeting with the Demons – who are short on forwards – has shut the door on any trade talk … for now. Melbourne wants him to sign a long-term extension to his deal which runs until the end of 2025, but Petty would prefer to wait. He could yet look to return to South Australia this time next year.
Do the Demons have another move up their sleeve given their salary cap situation?
With Brodie Grundy, James Harmes and James Jordon out the door and so far only Tom Fullarton in, Melbourne has made plenty of room in its salary cap. A last-ditch play for Tom Hawkins didn’t come through, but why wouldn’t Melbourne have a go at Jack Gunston if he doesn’t get to the Hawks. Or can the Dees use picks six and 11 to somehow shuffle up the draft order to ensure they can grab excitement machine Nick “Wizard” Watson?
Has Sydney already won the trade period with its hit-and-run mission?
Some clubs use brinkmanship to push out negotiations for as long as possible; others get in and get the job done. Sydney has been the latter this trade/free agency period. If Brodie Grundy gets back to his All-Australian form and if Taylor Adams has some luck with his body, the Swans’ midfield could be transformed in a contested sense. Add in premiership players James Jordon and Joel Hamling, and the Swans have boosted their 2024 flag hopes. Kinnear Beatson got his work done early and Sydney fans must be happy.
What is Shane McAdam really worth?
The Crows and the Demons cannot agree on what the forward is worth. All parties are confident the deal will get done, but the shadow-boxing will roll on for a few more days. The Crows initially wanted to use McAdam as part of their unlikely push to get Harrison Petty. Adelaide has also brushed aside the Demons’ offer of a future second-round pick, insisting it would prefer a player to be included in any trade discussions.
Will the Lachie Schultz to Collingwood deal go to the wire?
We reckon this could be done well before Wednesday’s deadline. The Dockers want the Pies’ future first-round pick, banking on a black and white slide next year. Collingwood is prepared to give up this year’s pick 19 in order to secure the Freo small forward. The negotiations roll on, and even though Schultz has a year to run on his contract, the expectation is that this deal will get over the line.
Is Ivan Soldo staying at Tigerland? Can Richmond get its replacement in the forward line (Jacob Koschitzke) to work alongside Tom Lynch?
Soldo has attracted interest in the past few seasons from various clubs but ultimately has stayed at Richmond. He is contracted, but could he see a chance to become Port Adelaide’s No.1 ruckman as an appetising incentive? But Richmond is desperate to keep him – and intends to. It would take a strong expression from Soldo that he wants to leave to change this. There have been a few roadblocks in the Koschitzke move to Punt Road, but surely the Hawks come to the party so they can move on to securing Mabior Chol and potentially Jack Gunston to partner Mitch Lewis.
One week down and no deals yet, can Port Adelaide land all its targets?
Brandon Zerk-Thatcher, Jordon Sweet and Esava Ratugolea all remain with their original clubs one week into the trade period. Zerk-Thatcher’s deal seems tied to Xavier Duursma, while talks are progressing on a move for Sweet. There is still plenty of time but the clock will be ticking loudly if the Power can’t soon start to clear the decks. At this stage all three deals still look likely to get over the line but there is a heap of work to get through.
What are the Kangaroos cooking up from a picks perspective?
The Roos are not just pushing to try to secure pick No.1 off the Eagles; they want to move up the draft order in whatever way they can. North Melbourne has picks 2, 3, 15, 17, 18, 57, 65 and 82 – one of the best draft hands in recent seasons. But they are not jealously guarding them. Instead, Brady Rawlings is open to trading some of those picks for a better hand at next month’s draft. The Roos won’t die wondering.
Did a Friday lunch between “SOS” and the Dockers help seal a Liam Henry deal?
We’re not totally sure what was on the menu for Saints list boss Stephen Silvagni and his Dockers’ counterpart David Walls at lunch on Friday, but the dessert might have been a deal to send Henry to Moorabbin. It’s close and you would expect this to be done as early as Monday or Tuesday so the Saints can move on to other deals which could see Paddy Dow join from Carlton (which seems to have hit a snag) as well as sending Nick Coffield to the Bulldogs.
Will the Hawks grant Jack Gunston his trade wish and if so what can the Lions do to fill the forward gap he might leave?
How the Mabior Chol deal shakes out with the Suns could decide whether Gunston gets his Hawthorn return or not. It’s certainly not something the Lions planned for, given they just let Tom Fullarton depart to Melbourne. Gunston was never going to be in Brisbane’s best 23 next season, but he offers depth in multiple areas that few on the list can match. If he departs, it would leave untested ruck-forward Henry Smith as the main deputy to Joe Daniher and Eric Hipwood. Could a team like Melbourne or Richmond also look at Gunston if the Hawks decline? The Hawks boosted the back-end of their draft capital by landing picks 44 and 63 for Tyler Brockman on Saturday, perhaps one of those can get Gunston over the line.
Will the Hollands brothers be reunited at Carlton?
If Elijah is to join his brother Ollie at the Blues, it won’t happen until next week. Suns list boss Craig Cameron has returned to the Gold Coast for the weekend, meaning any conversation with Carlton likely won’t happen until at least Monday. Gold Coast’s priority trade period business has been done, with the Suns grafting a hefty haul of picks to satisfy their points needs to match bids on a quartet of its Academy stars. If Elijah moves south the Suns will likely seek a future pick for the former first-rounder.
Does Fremantle turn its attention to another forward option after failing to break into the Tyler Brockman sweepstakes?
The Dockers came late for Brockman but barely got in the door, with the Hawk forward traded to West Coast on Saturday. If Lachie Schultz gets his way and moves to Collingwood, Coach Justin Longmuir will want another goalkicking option back through the door ahead of what shapes as a big season for the Swans coach. We still expect the Dockers to let Schultz go to the Pies but it might get more tempting to play hard ball with him now if nothing else materialises.
Will these fringe players find new homes?
A bunch of fringe players are still on the hunt for a second club, led by 2013 No.3 draft pick Jack Billings. The St Kilda forward wants to get to a new team and the Saints won’t stand in his way, but Collingwood’s interest has cooled and the market is quiet. He still holds a contract for the next two seasons. Port Adelaide defender Tom Clurey also holds a deal for the next two years and is happy to move, but so far has a lack of suitors. Richmond tall Bigoa Nyuon was interviewed by North Melbourne but has not received an offer. Brisbane hard nut Rhys Mathieson and Western Bulldogs premiership player Toby McLean are among other names on the lookout for new homes.
Is Geelong’s No.8 pick the key to more draft jostling?
The Bulldogs and Demons shuffled their decks to move up the order in the opening days of the trade period and attention may turn to the Cats. Geelong has been open that it is willing to deal No.8 for the right price. With North Melbourne holding three selections between 15 and 18, could the Roos try to add a fourth top-10 pick to have even more ammunition to go after West Coast’s No.1?
Why are “Dimma” and the Suns so quiet?
It’s been all about picks and points for the Suns so far in the trade period but that was always expected. Damien Hardwick wants to get his feet under the desk and see what’s at his disposal before going headhunting. Gold Coast knows it will have up to four Academy kids joining its ranks through the draft and that was always the focus. The only area of potential need is a rebounding defender, given Lachie Weller won’t return from an ACL until mid-season. But Connor Budarick’s return to fitness gives Hardwick a stopgap option until then.
Originally published as AFL trade: All the big news, deals to be done as Wednesday deadline nears
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