AFL Trades Day 4: Fremantle forward’s trade back to old club ‘absolutely on’

The dominoes are starting to fall in the AFL Trade Period after a Fremantle forward’s unexpected request to return to his old club.

Adam Cerra’s trade may have been unlocked. Photo by Daniel Carson/AFL Photos via Getty Images.

Welcome to our live coverage of Day 4 of the AFL Trade Period.

The dominoes are beginning to fall and the bargain buys are already emerging.

The biggest deal to be done Day 4 of the Trade Period saw Fremantle midfielder Adam Cerra officially go to Carlton in exchange for pick six and a future third round pick.

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Fremantle forward open to trade back to GWS

In a left-field move, Fremantle big man Rory Lobb has reportedly expressed interest in returning to GWS — the club where he started his career.

But the 29-year-old still has two years left on his contract at the Dockers, which is believed to be worth around $700,000.

AFL reporter Damian Barrett told Trade Radio discussions between the two clubs are still in the preliminary stages.

Lobb has reportedly already completed a medical for GWS, where he played 79 games between 2014 and 2018.

AFL experts believe a potential scenario that would allow Lobb to return his old team would see Giants captain Stephen Coniglio traded to Fremantle.

The midfielder has struggled in recent seasons due to a string of injuries and inconsistent form.

Coniglio is believed to be on a contract worth $900,000 per season, meaning if he was traded to the Dockers, GWS would have enough space in the salary cap to pay Lobb.

Could we see Rory Lobb back in GWS colours again? (AAP Image/Julian Smith)

SEN’s Sam Edmund also confirmed the 206cm forward-ruck is eager to leave Fremantle and the Giants aren’t the only club in the mix to pick him up.

“Rory Lobb to GWS is absolutely on,” Edmund tweeted.

“Lobb has been wanting out & Melb based clubs were told he’d take less than 700k he’s on now.

“The GWS call came earlier this week & Dockers told today.

“Lobb’s done a medical & clubs to talk trades tomorrow. Unclear whether GWS players involved.”

Following Adam Cerra’s move to Carlton, if Lobb was to depart Fremantle, the Dockers would reportedly have up to $2 million spare in their salary cap.

Brisbane midfielder Lachie Neale was linked with a move back to the Perth club before was linked before he quashed talk of a trade.

It’s now very much a case of watch this space for what the Dockers do with the space left in their salary cap.

Hawks star makes move to Dogs

Hawthorn star Tim O’Brien has joined the Western Bulldogs in a direct replacement for Lewis Young.

According to widespread reports, O’Brien has made his move to the grand finalists as an unrestricted free agent.

It follows the Bulldogs’ earlier move of letting Young join Carlton in exchange for the No. 52 draft pick. O’Brien is expected to make a move to playing as a defender.

The AFL is yet to announce the compensation Hawthorn will receive for seeing O’Brien leave

West Coast ‘skinned’ Carlton in confirmed trade

Carlton has traded Sam Petrevski-Seton to West Coast for the No. 52 draft pick.

In a deal that ropes in the Western Bulldogs, the Blues have moved the No. 52 pick to the Western Bulldogs in a trade for Lewis Young.

Channel 7’s Perth sports presenter Adrian Barich posted on Twitter the Eagles had “skinned” the Blues by getting Petrevski-Seton so cheaply.

Adam Cerra deal completed, Blues pay steep price

Adam Cerra is celebrating his 22nd birthday in a Carlton jumper after the trade paperwork for a deal with Fremantle was officially lodged with the AFL on Thursday.

The stalemate between Carlton and Fremantle has been the biggest saga of the trade period so far and it is ending just as dramatically as it started.

Adam Cerra is on the move. Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images.

The deal will see Carlton hand over its No. 6 draft pick as well as a future third round pick.

It was seen as a win for the Blues that Fremantle caved on negotiations surrounding a future second round pick and ultimately accepted the third round selection.

However, the details of the trade show just how much Carlton is giving up to sign the rising star.

As first reported by Fox Footy’s Max Laughton, the draft picks handed over by Carlton is the equivalent of the overall No. 4 pick, as measured by the AFL Draft Value Index — less than the haul of draft picks Geelong sent to GWS in its high-stakes deal surrounding star forward Jeremy Cameron.

Fremantle had earlier taken Cerra as the No. 5 overall draft pick.

Cerra has reportedly signed a four-year deal worth around $2.8 million.

The stalemate in the Carlton-Fremantle’s trade negotiations was unlocked earlier on Thursday when the Gold Coast Suns cut a deal with the Dockers which includes sending its No. 19 draft pick to Fremantle

Carlton hand over its prized No. 6 draft selection and its future second round pick.

Gold Coast cuts deal that ‘blows the roof off AFL Trade Period’

The Gold Coast Suns triggered the biggest moment of the AFL Trade Period in a play that unlocked Adam Cerra’s move to Carlton.

The Suns and Dockers reached an agreement that will see Gold Coast’s No. 19 draft pick and Will Brodie move to Fremantle in exchange for the Dockers’ future second round and fourth round draft selections.

Will Brodie is getting to Fremantle. Photo by Chris Hyde/AFL Photos/via Getty Images.

SEN’s Sam Edmund on Thursday reported the deal had massive ramifications.

“Gold Coast are about to blow the roof off the trade period with a deal that has been agreed with Fremantle,” Edmund said on SEN Breakfast with Garry and Tim.

“It’s not just the trade itself, but what flows off the back of it. They will send Pick 19 and Will Brodie over for a future second and fourth.

“So, pick 19 will now be used to unlock the deal for Jordan Clark — at least, that’s Fremantle’s thinking — and by extension, that unlocks the deal for Adam Cerra,” he said

Real reason Port gambled on Giants star

The general view of Jeremy Finlayson’s move to Port Adelaide is that the Power got a steal.

The hot-and-cold forward target was moved to the Power in exchange for a future third round pick and has signed a three-year deal.

The 25-year-old has struggled for consistency and will be hoping to develop some solid form at the Power.

He played 13 games for the Giants in 2021, but has previously shown he was the most talented pick from the Giants’ 2015 AFL Draft haul — of which there are now no remaining players at the club from the six players selected.

The Giants have a widely reported salary cap crunch and Finlayson’s move in exchange for such a measly return is potentially the result of the cap pressures.

Port Adelaide great Kane Cornes on Thursday morning suggested the real reason Port Adelaide made the move is because the Power see a weakness in its forward target options while Charlie Dixon’s fitness remains a concern.

“Charlie Dixon was banged up every week. I’m not sure how confident Port Adelaide would be in his body, so Finlayson gives them some depth there,” Cornes said on AFL Trade Radio.

Jeremy Finlayson is getting a fresh start. Photo by Jason McCawley/Getty Images.

Finlayson joins a loaded forward line that includes Dixon, Mitch Georgiades and Todd Marshall. He could also play as a key defender.

The Giants are also well positioned to cover for the loss of Finlayson with a forward line that includes Harry Himmelberg, Jesse Hogan, Jake Riccardi and Toby Greene.

AFL confirms monster four-club move

The Melbourne Demons traded back into the first round of this year‘s AFL Draft following a monster four-club picks swap with Western Bulldogs, Adelaide and St Kilda.

From the deal, the Bulldogs have traded out pick 17 for more points to secure father-son prospect Sam Darcy.

It also complicates Jordan Dawson’s path to Adelaide.

Melbourne
Receives: 17, 37, 49
Gives: Future first, 33, 45

Western Bulldogs
Receives: 23, 44, 45
Gives:17, 75

Adelaide
Receives: Future first (Melbourne), 33, 75
Gives: 23, 37, 44, 62, 66, future fourth

St Kilda
Receives: 62, 66, future fourth (Adelaide)
Gives: 49

The deal was officially lodged on Wednesday afternoon.

Dumped Saint signs for reigning premiers

Former Saints midfielder Luke Dunstan officially signed with the Melbourne Demons on Wednesday as an unrestricted free agent.

Dunstan was axed by St Kilda after averaging 25 disposals in 12 games this season.

“We came into this trade period looking to re-stock the midfield area and Luke fits the bill perfectly,” Melbourne List Manager Tim Lamb told Melbourne Media.

“We are really happy that Luke has chosen to make the move to our club.

“With Nathan Jones retiring and Aaron vandenBerg moving on, we have lost a considerable amount of experience out of our midfield group.

“Luke is a proven performer at the highest level and finished this season in exceptional fashion polling 11 votes in the Brownlow Medal.

“We think Luke’s best football is ahead of him and just as importantly, Luke is a terrific cultural fit for our club.“

Luke Dunstan could make Melbourne’s midfield somehow even better. (Photo by Darrian Traynor/Getty Images)