AFL trade period: Clayton Oliver wants move to Geelong, but will he attend Dees’ B&F?

Clayton Oliver wants to leave Melbourne, but those around him still want the superstar midfielder to attend Friday’s B&F, even if he may have already let slip that he’s excited to be a Cat.

MELBOURNE. 07/07/2022. AFL Round 17. Geelong vs. Melbourne at GMHBA Stadium, Geelong. Clayton Oliver of the Demons and Patrick Dangerfield of the Cats during the 2nd qtr. . Photo by Michael Klein

Melbourne superstar Clayton Oliver has been urged to attend the club’s best-and-fairest as part of a potential final farewell to teammates.

Oliver confirmed his intentions late on Thursday night when he liked an Instagram post reporting the midfielder wanted to join the Cats.

The Herald Sun has verified it was Oliver’s official account claytonoliver13.

Western Bulldog Bailey Smith, whose account is named bazlenka, also liked the post by ‘Cenchfooty’ which has 235,000 followers on Instagram.

The move from Oliver underlines his intentions to leave Melbourne following the meeting with the Cats on Tuesday.

Clayton Oliver liked this picture on instagram.

Oliver is keen to get to Geelong. Pic: Michael Klein

Star playmaker Tom Stewart said on Channel 7 on Thursday night the meeting “went well” and that the Demon was “a good man”. “It was about enlightening him about what we are about at the footy club and the things we hold dear and the things we really value,” Stewart said.

A disappointed Oliver is keen to join Geelong as part of a bombshell trade as Melbourne scrambled to consider its options on Thursday including potential replacement players.

But the most the Cats would be prepared to trade for the brilliant ballwinner is a future first-round draft pick, if the Demons paid some of his seven-figure salary.

Delicate talks will continue on Friday as Oliver prepares to take his seat at the club’s Keith ‘Bluey’ Truscott Medal event.

His appearance will avoid some further embarrassment for Melbourne which also gave superstar goal kicker Christian Petracca permission to miss the event to attend a Red Bull training camp in Austria.

While Petracca is overseas, Oliver has been urged by friends to front up for the event even as he attempts to complete a remarkable move to Geelong in the AFL trade period which starts Monday.

Melbourne would face a significant fan backlash if it proceeds with the trade and on Thursday began assessments of players it could attract with Oliver’s salary off the books.

But Oliver is determined to play for Geelong next season and could remain disgruntled if he is kept at Melbourne against his wishes next season in a potential further blow to his trade value next year.

While the Demons have not yet made a decision on Oliver’s future, the club would hope to follow Collingwood’s lead after winning the 2023 premiership on the back of the shock Adam Treloar deal to Western Bulldogs.

Geelong will begin negotiations with Western Bulldogs on a deal for Bailey Smith involving sending the Cats’ pick 15 to the kennel.

Forward Jack Martin will arrive from Carlton as a delisted free agent.

But it’s the Oliver bombshell which could make the Cats next year’s premiership favourite and cause further shockwaves at Melbourne following a turbulent year.

HOW DOES CLARRY GET TO THE CATS?

Melbourne superstar Clayton Oliver wants to explore a trade to Geelong after feeling let down by the Demons’ decision to contact rival clubs about him.

Oliver, 27, was prepared to stay at the club but felt like the rug was pulled out from underneath him when Melbourne chief executive Gary Pert spoke to rivals.

Oliver is keen to play for Geelong next season, but also understands the deal could be too difficult to complete due to his $1.4 million wage and Melbourne’s return.

The Cats would have to give up a future first-round pick at a minimum and accommodate another seven-figure wage in the salary cap.

There is no certainty the Cats and Demons could strike a deal on the wage bill and whether Oliver would also be prepared to take a pay cut as part of a new arrangement.

More key talks will be had across the weekend with his manager Nick Gieschen, from Connors Sports Management, at the centre of one of the most delicate potential moves of the past 10 years.

The Demons will hold talks on the Oliver situation on Thursday but may not have clarity on the predicament before the best and fairest on Friday night.

Will Clayton Oliver and Patrick Dangerfield be teammates next season? Picture: Michael Klein

It means Oliver’s future would be a major elephant in the room as the club speaks to an incredibly turbulent 12 months including Joel Smith’s drugs suspension, Glen Bartlett’s court brawl, Christian Petracca’s injury debacle and the Oliver trade circus.

There is a view Melbourne would be best to cut the cord on Oliver, but the Demons would receive a significantly reduced return on a trade.

The club put out a statement on Tuesday that it wanted to keep Oliver but the situation has changed since then with Oliver now open-minded about a blockbuster switch.

Oliver’s relationship with key people at the club has been strained by the club’s trade talks in recent weeks.

The Demons could still be prepared to keep Oliver due to Simon Goodwin’s strong relationship and belief in the brilliant onballer who has endured some personal problems off the field.

Geelong would have to consider the resources and support Oliver would need at the club if he is able to complete the trade to the Cats.

But the problems at Melbourne go well above the senior coach as Pert called at least one rival club with the list management committee’s full support in the hope it would be kept quiet.

But the call was leaked to the media, prompting Oliver to speak with Geelong chiefs and players on Tuesday. In the two days since, Oliver has been prepared to assess whether he can play in blue and white next season.

A trade, while it remains incredibly difficult and far from certain, would be one of the biggest bombshell exchanges over the past decade in the AFL.

It could see Geelong land Bailey Smith from Western Bulldogs, Carlton’s Jack Martin, and Oliver, who is one of the top-three on-ballers in the game at his prime, over the next fortnight.

But any trade would go down to the wire as the Cats believe the ball is in Melbourne’s court now after considering trading him to either Adelaide or St Kilda last season due to some behavioural concerns and professionalism problems.

Oliver has addressed those problems this year, although they remain a work in progress.

Collingwood traded gun pair Adam Treloar and Jaidyn Stephenson, sparking outrage across the industry in 2020, but won the premiership in 2023.

Melbourne is currently in the process of reviewing the football department amid serious concerns about the club culture.

There is a view at Melbourne the club needs to make serious changes after failing to win a final in the three years since the 2021 premiership.