Brisbane Lions must be prepared to lose James Aish for nothing

BRISBANE will have to start talking tough if the writing on the wall is correct about young wingman James Aish.

Lions James Aish. The Brisbane Lions vs the Richmond Tigers at th Gabba in Brisbane. Pic Peter Wallis

BRISBANE will have to start talking tough.

If the writing on the wall is correct, wingman James Aish will request a trade at season’s end in a bid to join a Melbourne club.

We think Collingwood lands Giants’ midfielder Adam Treloar, putting Carlton in the box seat for Aish.

NEWS AND WHISPERS: DEPARTMENT OF TRADE

The question for Brisbane is, “Will they get trampled on again in the trade period?”

Two years ago the Lions were set back years when five talented youngsters all said they wanted to leave and were traded to their clubs of choice.

Elliot Yeo was sent to West Coast for pick No.28 (Lewis Taylor). Jared Polec went home to Port for picks No.22 (Darcy Gardiner) and No.34 (Nick Robertson). Sam Docherty bailed to Carlton for No.33 (Tom Cutler).

Brisbane was a bargain bin in late 2013.

It was smart management from the player agents, but disastrous from a club point of view.

If Aish checks out in September or so, as we all expect, the Lions can’t afford to be as kind as they were with the “Go-home five”.

In fact, Brisbane might have to drop a Nick Stevens-style bombshell with the man it took with pick No.7 in 2014 and force the South Australian into the draft if it cannot secure what it deems a fair trade.

Simply, it might be time for Brisbane to send a strong statement to the footy world.

Elliot Yeo was one of five youngsters to leave the Lions at the end of 2013.

The club helped restore some trade parity last year when it claimed superstar onballer Dayne Beams, Allen Christensen and Mitch Robinson, but the Lions must be prepared to lose Aish for nothing.

Otherwise, the kids might just keep departing Brisbane, leaving the club stuck in a doom loop.

Fellow South Australian Sam Mayes, taken with pick No.8 in 2012, is another man which Port Adelaide is watching closely.

So what is a fair trade for Aish from, say, Carlton?

Aish, 19, is having only a modest season. In fact, he looks to have gone backwards in his second campaign, and was dropped to the reserves by coach Justin Leppitsch, but maybe that’s because his mind is elsewhere.

The 182cm midfielder’s production has dipped from an average 18 possessions a game (when he finished fourth in the Rising Star award) last year to 14 in 2015.

He is a classy player, for sure. He won two premierships at Norwod before he was drafted.

But Aish’s game is mostly outside.

It is what swayed the Western Bulldogs to Marcus Bontempelli at pick No. 4 that year.

Carlton wouldn’t offer their first pick (top-three) and Brisbane wouldn’t want to accept the Blues’ second (No.19 to 21), leaving a battle for middle-ground.

Maybe if Lachie Henderson leaves to Geelong for the Cats’ first round pick, that could find its way back to Brisbane, satisfying the Blues and Lions, albeit in a shallow draft pool.

Then again, Brisbane is bottom of the ladder, potentially giving it the first picks in the national and pre-season drafts.

Would the Lions re-draft Aish? Unlikely. Are they about to play hard ball? Most definitely.

JAMES AISH

Game averages for the past two seasons

2014 / 2015

Disposals: 17.6 / 14.3

Rankings points: 71 / 50

Contested possession 35% / 37 %

THE GO-HOME FIVE

The SuperCoach averages of the quintet who left the Brisbane Lions after the 2013 season

Player: 2013 / 2014 / 2015

Elliot Yeo (WC): 62 / 65 / 90

Sam Docherty (Carl) 52 / 77 / 92

Billy Longer (StK) 51 / 65 / 76

Jared Polec (Port) 31 / 82 / 69

Patrick Karnezis (Coll): 47 / DNP / 35

Originally published as Brisbane Lions must be prepared to lose James Aish for nothing