Jesse Hogan has already agreed to Fremantle deal: report

MELBOURNE star Jesse Hogan has reportedly agreed to a deal to move to Peth in a trade that brings Gold Coast star Steven May into play.

AFL Round 17. 14/07/2018. Melbourne vs Western Bulldogs at the MCG. Melbourne's Jesse Hogan celebrates his goal in the third quarter . Pic: Michael Klein

JESSE Hogan has reportedly already agreed to a multi-million dollar deal with Fremantle, according to a report.

The only problem is he wouldn’t want to become a Docker in 2019, according to Essendon legend Tim Watson.

Watson told SEN on Tuesday that Hogan would be nervous about moving to Fremantle after Freo star Lachie Neale’s recent admission that he is still weighing up his future after recently discussing a move to the Brisbane Lions.

“If you put together what we’ve just played and you play that to Jesse Hogan — if I’m Jesse Hogan, I’m thinking ‘you’re about to tell me, I’m going to go to your team and your second best midfielder is about to walk out... what sort of a group am I actually walking into,’” Watson asked.

Watson’s comments come after The Australian’s Greg Denham reported on Tuesday that Hogan has agreed to a blockbuster deal with the Dockers and will force the Demons into a trade this trade period.

“A bombshell is about to hit the lead-up to the AFL trade period with star Melbourne forward Jesse Hogan set to play with Fremantle next year if the Dockers are successful in their multimillion-dollar bid to lure the West Australian home,” the report claims.

“The Dockers have been chasing Hogan for years, but The Australian understands they believe they have a realistic chance of recruiting him in next month’s player-exchange period, which officially starts on Monday week.”

Split?

Hogan missed the Demons late season surge into the finals with a foot injury — just the latest set back he has experienced during his time at Melbourne.

Injuries and personal setbacks have restricted to Hogan to 30 appearances in the past two years.

The Australian reports the Demons are open to working out a deal with the Dockers because it boosts Melbourne’s pursuit of former Gold Coast captain Steven May, who has announced he will leave the Suns this off-season.

According to the report, Melbourne expects Fremantle to offer up its first round draft pick to complete the trade for Hogan.

That draft pick would then be used to sell onto the Gold Coast in a proposed trade for May.

The star defender is off-contract at the end of 2019 and qualifies for free agency next year if the club can’t work out a trade for him this off-season.

However, the deal is fraught with risk as Collingwood, Hawthorn and Essendon are also reportedly forming plans to recruit May during the trade period.

The shock backflip on Hogan’s position comes just two weeks after Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin declared Hogan wouldn’t be going anywhere.

“Jesse’s a Melbourne person and a Melbourne player and we love having him at this football club, so that won’t change,” Goodwin told SEN Radio.

The Herald Sun also recently reported Hogan’s manager Jason Dover has privately said the star forward is comfortable staying in Melbourne next season.

The Demons have Hogan and Jake Lever to go into the team that was destroyed by 66-points by West Coast in the preliminary final at Optus Stadium.

BIG MASON’S SHEEPISH GRAND FINAL ADMISSION

Red hot pie.

HOW close did Collingwood star Mason Cox come to leaving the Magpies at the end of last year?

Not as close to leaving as at the last grand final he went to. The last, and only time, he’s been to the grand final was 2014, just months after he and the Magpies had agreed a speculative deal to bring him to Australia.

“I left at three quarter time,” he laughed.

“It was the first game I’d been to since moving here. Sydney got smashed by Hawthorn.

“The people I was with, they left. So I was sitting at the grand final by myself and didn’t know anyone.

“I thought it was about time to go. I don’t know if Meatloaf was performing after but it probably wasn’t as great a post party. I ended up going home.” This year, an early departure won’t be an option.

Cox will take his place in Collingwood’s forward line on Saturday in the 2018 grand final against West Coast as one of the most unlikely stars in the sport. His three-goal second quarter in last weekend’s preliminary final triumph over Richmond was pivotal to ensuring the Magpies’ place in the decider. Collingwood might not have been there at all, if not for showdown talks with coach Nathan Buckley last year.

The 211cm tall Texan said he didn’t really contemplate leaving, but others did on his behalf.

“That was for my agent. I said, ‘you know what, do your job. I pay you, go do your job’,” he said.

“I’m sure he was talking to other people (but) I’m happy where I’m at now.

“The club, showing faith in me to take a guy from the States who’s never heard of (AFL) or played it to take a punt as you say, I owed them with another contract.”

— AAP

AFL GRAND FINAL UMPIRES ANNOUNCED

Razor Ray is going to have something to say.

THE umpires for the 2018 AFL decider will have 17 grand final games experience when they walk out onto the MCG on Saturday.

The AFL announced on Tuesday Brett Rosebury, Shaun Ryan and Matt Stevic have been selected as the whistleblowers out in the middle for Saturday’s season finale at the MCG.

The AFL announced the trio was selected after they impressed officials with their combined performance in overseeing Collingwood’s shock win over Richmond in Friday’s preliminary final boil over.

Cult figure “Razor” Ray Chamberlain has been listed as an emergency.

Matt Stevic, who will be umpiring his fifth grand final, will conduct the first bounce after the anthem is sung.

“Brett’s had five or six over the journey, so I think it’s my turn to step up and start the game,” Stevic said, according to AFL.com.au

“If it’s pouring with rain, we’ll give it to (Shaun Ryan) and he can kick things off.

“Brett would say the same thing, having started quite a few, that you’re pretty toey. But you also understand that there are many other facets to the game that we’re responsible for.

“It’s an important part, but it’s a small part of our overall role for the day in terms of our decision-making and managing the game across two hours.”