The Gold Coast Suns have joined the race for Melbourne key defender James Frawley

GOLD Coast has joined a long list of clubs trying to lure Melbourne key defender James Frawley.

Demons

GOLD Coast has joined a long list of clubs trying to lure Melbourne key defender James Frawley.

The Suns made an unofficial inquiry about Frawley in the lead-up to their win against the Demons last Sunday week.

The 24-year-old has also been linked to Greater Western Sydney and St Kilda, where his uncle, Danny, played 240 games.

Frawley is regarded as one of the best key defenders in the game in his prime but, like his club, has struggled with his form in the early part of the season.

The 193cm backman is contracted to Melbourne until the end of next season, when he becomes a restricted free agent.

If he did decide to leave at the end of next year, there is no guarantee Melbourne would get free agency compensation in return.

There is a strong push from the AFL Players' Association and leading managers such as Craig Kelly and Marty Pask to scrap free agency compensation to help release the handbrake on player movement.

Players who have served the one club for eight consecutive seasons qualify for free agency.

While the Dees have room in the salary cap to match any big offers, Frawley, a No.12 draft pick, has been starved of success in his seven years at the Dees.

Frawley, who has twice finished top three in the Dees' best-and-fairest, has played in 30 wins from 109 games.

"There's no short-term fix, it's a long-term fix," Neeld said.

"We're doing exactly what everyone said the football club needed to do two to three years ago."

There is also a question mark over the futures of teammates Colin Sylvia, 27, Aaron Davey, 29, and Jack Watts, 21.

Sylvia, who is in the midst of a three-game suspension, and Davey are unrestricted free agents at the end of the season.

Watts is also out of contract and is likely to wait until the end of the year to make a decision on his future.