AFL trade news: Carlton set to make play for West Coast’s pick 3
Carlton has made an audacious play to land West Coast’s pick three in a trade. JAY CLARK reveals the Blues’ bold move comes as they eye Sam Walsh’s cousin to bolster their midfield at the draft.
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Carlton is eyeing off West Coast’s number three draft pick in a bid to land one of the top underage midfielders in the country.
The Blues have picks 12 and 14 and have indicated they are keen to surge further up the draft order as part of another aggressive trade move.
Carlton sounded out West Coast on a deal on Friday to swap the Blues’ pick 12, future first-round and second-round for the Eagles’ pick three, before making the deal with Hawthorn.
Carlton has made clear they are interested in West Coast’s third pick in this year’s draft which could give Michael Voss’s men a chance to snare Finn O’Sullivan, who is the cousin of jet midfielder Sam Walsh.
Many recruiters consider O’Sullivan the draft’s top prospect as a brilliantly well-rounded inside-outside ballwinner who is penetrating by foot.
The Blues’ strong interest in landing pick three from West Coast and securing a stand-out midfielder explains why they aren’t going overboard for Port Adelaide’s Dan Houston.
Carlton’s recruiting team will continue to talk about their options with 12 and 14 and whether they can engage West Coast, Melbourne or St Kilda on a pick swap for an earlier selection.
The Blues have confirmed to other clubs they are happy to hold their two draft aces or rise earlier up the order to have a crack at another generational talent.
West Coast would prefer to hold on to three but Carlton will pitch 12 and 14 as a way West Coast can land Liam Baker from Richmond with 12 and a young talent with 14.
The Eagles face a massive 48 hours weighing up their options after missing their chance to secure pick 14 from Hawthorn.
The Blues rate the talent at the top-end of this year’s draft and will engage in more talks across the weekend.
Top prospects other than O’Sullivan include 187cm ballwinner Sam Lalor, 181cm playmaker Jagga Smith and 190cm midfielder Harvey Langford.
Melbourne is also engaged in talks with clubs about securing a second pick inside the top-10, including Essendon’s number nine selection in exchange for the Demons’ future first-rounder.
Melbourne’s national recruiting manager Jason Taylor has an excellent record and is keen to dip further into a talent pool recruiters are leading for its quality and depth.
Essendon, which has pick nine, wants to take a top talent before a bid comes for gun small forward Isaac Kako.
Melbourne could bid on the jet small forward at pick number five.
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