The Western Bulldogs are prepared to send their best and fairest winner Josh Dunkley into the pre-season draft if the Brisbane Lions don’t offer a suitable deal for the 25-year-old midfielder.
The club’s list management committee has agreed to the shock move that could leave them empty-handed after the Lions traded out pick 15 in a pick swap with the Giants on Wednesday, scuppering the chances of them landing Dunkley in exchange for selection 15 and a future first round pick.
The Lions did that deal after the Bulldogs refused to send later picks to the Lions along with Dunkley in exchange for two first round draft picks.
The Bulldogs’ Josh Dunkleyrequested a trade to Brisbane.Credit:Getty Images
A Bulldogs’ source said the club would be prepared to cop the inevitable fallout and pick Dunkley up in the pre-season draft if he was still available at that stage rationalising the move on the basis it would deny a likely finals’ competitor a gun midfielder.
The Bulldogs are not prepared to accept merely a future first round selection for the premiership player and will turn their attention to attempting to poach a Lions player along with a future first round pick if the Lions cannot find a way to satisfy their demands.
A source close to the negotiations said the Lions were preparing to offer pick 21 and a future first rounder for Dunkley, however a Brisbane spokesperson told The Age the club was “insistent on not playing the negotiations out in public”.
The Bulldogs are not interested in Rhys Mathieson who is exploring his options but could enquire about emerging players on the Lions’ list.
The hardline stance from the Bulldogs is likely to accelerate the Lions’ thinking as they prioritise getting a deal done for Jack Gunston before turning their attention to Dunkley with six days still remaining before the trade deadline.
The Lions were courting Dunkley from midway through the season with the midfielder nominating the Lions soon after they bowed out of the premiership race in the preliminary final. The Lions offered a long-term deal for Dunkley to support brilliant midfielder Lachie Neale with the Bulldogs, who also offered him a long-term deal, disappointed to lose him.
Geelong remain tight-lipped on whether they are prepared to trade big man Esava Ratugolea who has made it clear he wants to get to Port Adelaide during this trade period.
Geelong have been reluctant to let the contracted 24-year-old depart despite him playing just four senior games this season, as they believe he can offer them depth in many parts of the ground and coach Chris Scott is a big believer in his talent.
However with the Cats needing to trade out a future second round pick to complete the Jack Bowes deal and potentially needing first round picks to secure both Tanner Bruhn from the Giants and OIiver Henry from Collingwood, they may need to obtain a future second round pick from Port Adelaide to adhere to AFL rules around retaining a minimum number of future picks.
Ratugolea played the first three matches before being demoted to the VFL and then required surgery after hurting his ankle mid-year.
He returned to play the final round but did not figure in the finals.
Port see him playing a role in defence and as a potential ruckman with more senior opportunities likely at Alberton Oval than at the defending premier.
The Cats have a long tradition of giving players opportunities at other clubs after several years in their system if their spot in the senior team is not established.
Geelong list manager Andrew Mackie told AFL Trade Radio on Wednesday, the big Cat remained a required player, although Ratugolea’s position was reasonable.
“We’ve put games into ‘Sav’ and he’s been a big part of our succession plan forward of the footy,” Mackie said.
“Clearly blokes like Sav six years into the system just want to start playing footy, and we’ve had that discussion with him. We’ll continue to try and map out for him how that would look.
“He’s a contracted player. No doubt the coach does love him, we love him, but we totally understand that he’s trying to work out where he’s going to play his footy. We’re pretty clear on how that looks, so that’s where that one sits.”
Versatile Geelong big man Esava Ratugolea.Credit:Getty Images
Collingwood and the Giants are adamant they want fair returns for Henry and Bruhn respectively as they were both chosen with first-round picks two years ago. The Cats are keen to hold on to pick No.7 they will gain in the Jack Bowes deal, so might have to give up a future second-round pick in return.
Port Adelaide are waiting on deals to obtain Jason Horne-Francis from North Melbourne and Junior Rioli from West Coast however a potential three-way deal involving Port, the Kangaroos and West Coast stalled when the Eagles decided they wanted to get a player from Port Adelaide for the deal to work. However Port say emerging stars such as Zak Butters, Mitch Georgiades, Xavier Duursma, Josh Sinn and Miles Bergman have no interest in leaving the club and they had no interest in trading them.
Gold Coast forward Josh Corbett also joined Fremantle on Thursday.
The Suns received the Dockers’ future fourth-round selection in return.
Josh Corbett.Credit:Getty Images
Corbett kicked 33 goals from 36 games since his debut for the Suns in 2019 and shapes as a lead-up forward for the Dockers who are also interested in speedy wingman Jeremy Sharp during this trade period.
Melbourne’s Adam Tomlinson is open to being traded out of Melbourne after his opportunities in defence became limited in the past two seasons.
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