Trade and free agency season is upon us, a key juncture when clubs build their lists. It features three main elements: the draft, which started in 1986, is primarily about new players entering the league; free agency (introduced at the end of the 2012 season) and trading are for players seeking to move clubs. These are three important levers of the AFL’s equalisation mantra, the idea being to create an even competition.
The 2022 AFL trade period officially opens at 9am on Monday, October 3 and closes at 7.30pm on Wednesday, October 12.
Luke Jackson will ask for a trade, but which WA club is in the box seat?Credit:The Age, AFL Photos, Getty Images
The period for restricted and unrestricted free agents to move begins on Friday, and closes on Friday, October 7. Delisted free agents have two small windows in November to join new clubs.
As recruiters and list managers get busy, here are some of the technical terms you will hear over the next fortnight.
What is a restricted free agent?
An off-contract player who has played nine or fewer years with their current club and is in the top quarter for salaries at that club. This means the existing club can match any free-agency offer made for the player. Jordan De Goey had been the most high-profile restricted free agent, until re-signing with the Magpies on Friday. North Melbourne’s Ben McKay, Essendon’s Darcy Parish, St Kilda’s Jade Gresham, the Brisbane Lions’ Eric Hipwood and Adelaide’s Tom Doedee will be interesting watches in their free-agency years of 2023 – unless they agree to new deals in the off-season.
Staying true: Jordan De Goey, a restricted free agent, has agreed to terms with the Magpies, eschewing an offer from the Saints.Credit:Getty Images
Who are unrestricted free agents?
A player who has played eight or nine years with their club, is off contract and is not in the top quarter for salaries at the club. It can also be an out-of-contract player who has had 10 or more years with a club, regardless of salary. This player may walk to another club with no recourse available to their current club. The Lions’ Daniel McStay, expected to cross to Collingwood, is an unrestricted free agent. Western Bulldogs pair Mitch Wallis and Zaine Cordy are among their club’s unrestricted free agents.
What is free agency for life?
Any player who has previously been a free agent automatically becomes a free agent at the end of every ensuing contract. This included premiership Cat Isaac Smith, the Norm Smith medallist confirming he has inked a new deal.
Collingwood’s Brodie Grundy has been in talks with the Demons. Should he move, it would be part of a Magpies’ salary dump.Credit:Getty Images
There’s another agent … what is a pre-agent?
An increasingly important part of list management. This is a player who is one year away from becoming a free agent. This player may be traded by a club to maximise their value rather than be at the mercy of the AFL’s free agency compensation scheme, particularly if the player has indicated he will not re-sign. Sydney’s Callum Mills and Carlton’s Charlie Curnow were pre-agents this season, each inking long-term deals, for they have leverage over their own clubs. Giants star Jacob Hopper is a pre-agent.
Should I be nervous about a salary dump?
No, this doesn’t involve a trip to the bathroom. Indeed, this increasingly has become an important mechanism in a bid to rectify financial mistakes, for it allows a club to trade a player to another club predominantly to clear space under the salary cap. The player’s new club generally gives up very little to get the player. Brodie Grundy, expected to leave Collingwood for Melbourne, and Gold Coast’s Brayden Fiorini, could be classified under this system through this trade period. Grundy, however, is likely to still have part of his salary paid by the Magpies. As reported by The Age, there has been a recent loosening in the regulations. This means that clubs also have the option to do things like bundling an attractive early draft pick with a highly paid player in a trade for just a lowly pick as a way of getting the player’s salary off the books.
When do future picks come into play?
Since 2015, clubs have been able to trade draft picks not only for the current year, but for the following year. These are known as “future picks”. This allows clubs greater flexibility to reach deals as they have more assets to utilise. If a club trades its future selection to another club, the second club’s pick remains tied to the ladder position of the first club. The Tigers, for instance, have picks 12, 19 and 30 in this year’s draft, but may also have to use their own future first-round selection in next year’s draft to get deals done for Giants pair Tim Taranto and Jacob Hopper. Both men have been offered seven-year deals to leave.
What are the rules around next generation academies?
The academies, introduced in 2017, allow clubs to increase the numbers of Indigenous and multicultural players in the system. However, they have been a topic of debate, for the AFL has since slashed the incentive for clubs to produce players without having the rights to match bids on them in the protected zone of the draft. In 2020, when Jamarra Ugle-Hagan was the No.1 pick for the Western Bulldogs via their academy, the AFL ruled that clubs would not be able to match bids on their academy talent within the first 40 picks in 2022.
The Tigers may have to use their future first-round draft pick to get deals done for Tim Taranto (pictured) and Jacob Hopper.
What do supplementary selection picks allow clubs to do?
This option was introduced in 2018, allowing clubs to add undrafted or delisted players to their rookie list – even after the rookie draft – until shortly before the season, provided the club had a list spot open or a long-term injury.
Finally, pick swaps, trading up and splitting picks
This involves clubs exchanging draft selections. Can be used if one club is after an early pick to trade up and take a certain player in the draft while others may be content to slip back. A club can trade a high-ranked pick for two later selections. This tactic is known as “splitting” a pick. Draft picks can be traded even after the completion of the primary trade period.
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