Fremantle say they intend to keep tall forward Rory Lobb, who is likely to seek a trade to the Bulldogs, if tall utility Griffin Logue leaves the club.
Industry sources said that the Dockers have made known that if Logue leaves to take up an offer with another club, then they would hold Lobb to his contract. Lobb is contracted for one season only and has long been linked with a move to the Western Bulldogs, the ex-Giant also having recently bought a home in Melbourne.
Big men in demand: Rory Lobb and Griffin Logue.Credit:AFL Photos, Getty Images
Logue has been offered a four-year deal, estimated at slightly under $500,000 per season, but would earn more if he took up an offer with another club in Melbourne. The Kangaroos are among the Melbourne clubs to have expressed interest in Logue, whose flexibility – more known as a tall defender, he can also play forward – is among his attractions.
Another Docker, wingman Blake Acres, is expected to be traded to Carlton in what will likely be the Blues’ only significant aquisition during the trade period, while the Dockers try to bring in Luke Jackson from Melbourne and potentially Jeremy Sharp from the Gold Coast Suns. Jackson informed Melbourne of his wish to be traded to either Fremantle or West Coast on Tuesday, as The Age forecast.
Dockers ruckman Lloyd Meek, subject to trade speculation due to the potential arrival of Jackson, is under contract for next year.
None of the relevant Dockers have yet told the club that they wish to be traded, with their futures expected to be clarified in exit interviews this week.
Should Acres be traded to Carlton, as expected, the draft pick that the Dockers gain could help them acquire Sharp, or improve their draft position should Jackson choose Fremantle over West Coast.
Melbourne, which has met with Collingwood’s All-Australian ruckman Brodie Grundy, would open up room to pay for much of Grundy’s five-year contract if they lost Jackson, with the Magpies expected to a pay some portion of the contract should Grundy agree to be traded.
Logue, at 24-years-of-age and 194 centimetres, can play as a genuine key defender, depending on the opponent, but has effectively been Fremantle’s third key back behind Alex Pearce and the 195-cm Brennan Cox, hence the Dockers’ willingness to throw Logue forward.
Lobb, 29, was open to a trade to Greater Western Sydney, his original AFL club, during last year’s trade period. Lobb is on a substantial contract for next year, but as with most players who have a short deal, his next club could extend and flatten out his contract.
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