Bombers reject Hawks' first trade bid for captain Zach Merrett after Hawks hand Dons ultimatum

Hawthorn gave the Bombers an ultimatum on their offer for skipper Zach Merrett, but the Dons have formally knocked back the deal to set up a tense final day of trade period. See the latest.

Hawthorn’s bitter deadlock with Essendon over its offer for wantaway skipper Zach Merrett will head into a tense final day of the AFL trade period after the Hawks threatened to trade their prized No.9 draft pick to a rival club.

That first-round selection is a key plank of the Hawks’ offer for Merrett, but the Bombers have rejected the package that Hawthorn officially put forward to them on Tuesday.

Essendon insisted late on Tuesday that its “position has not changed”, reaffirming its intention not to trade the six-time Bombers’ best and fairest winner.

Tensions between the two fierce rivals escalated further on Tuesday, leaving Merrett’s bid to join the Hawks in jeopardy heading towards Wednesday’s 7.30pm trade deadline.

Zach Merrett wants to become a Hawk. Picture: Daniel Pockett/Getty Images.

After a month of trade speculation and a cold war between the two parties in which Merrett’s manager Tom Petroro was the conduit in early discussions, Hawthorn formally made its trade offer to the Bombers via email on Tuesday afternoon.

It came after Merrett told new Essendon president Andrew Welsh this week that he wanted out of Tullamarine and was determined to join the Hawks.

Hawthorn’s offer for the 30-year-old midfielder included this year’s pick 9, next year’s first round selection, a second round pick this year or a future second round pick, and either pick 62 or a player such as young midfielder Henry Hustwaite.

But the Hawks also set a deadline of Tuesday 7pm for the Bombers to respond to their offer, insisting it had been fielding offers from rival clubs chasing the No.9 pick.

Merrett is one of a dozen or more AFL players with their immediate futures resting on the final day of trading.

The Hawks will now consider those rival approaches for the No.9 selection, potentially for a future first round pick.

They will look for other ways to potentially entice the Bombers back to the negotiating table on the final day of the trade period.

All along Essendon has publicly held the line that it would not trade its disgruntled captain.

Welsh told this masthead last week that the Bombers planned to hold firm on Merrett, who still has two more years to run on his current deal.

The Bombers locked in Gold Coast’s Brayden Fiorini in a trade on Tuesday for a future third round pick.

Hawthorn is also working on closing out a deal to send Jai Serong to Sydney, while Melbourne is keen on striking a deal for Changkuoth Jiath.

Inside midfielder Hustwaite is understood to be open to a move for more opportunity but has not asked out of the Hawks.

Despite playing just 10 games in the last three seasons amid stellar VFL form, Hustwaite is happy to play on at Hawthorn and fight for a senior spot if a deal to Essendon doesn’t go through.

He was subbed off in the final two of his four AFL games this year but averaged 29.4 disposals in the VFL with Box Hill.

Originally published as Bombers reject Hawks' first trade bid for captain Zach Merrett after Hawks hand Dons ultimatum