Get all the latest news in the trade, free agency and draft landscape in Inside Trading, AFL.com.au's dedicated column for player movement. Find out the latest on contracts, deals, trades, draftees, rules, agents and who is going where from the AFL.com.au team.

ROOS' HUGE PLAY SETS UP BLAKEY CALL

NORTH Melbourne's all-in approach and mega offer to Swan Nick Blakey has swung the pendulum in the chase for the star Sydney defender in an eventful trade day.

Clubs are anticipating a decision from Blakey on Friday on where he wants to play next year, with Sydney not ruling out listening to trade offers for the 26-year-old.

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Blakey's day started with a meeting with Gold Coast and coach Damien Hardwick, who flew down to Melbourne for the catch-up, before then meeting the Kangaroos and finishing with a meeting with St Kilda.

The All-Australian is also being sought by Essendon and he had his eyes on Geelong as a destination, having spoken to the Cats earlier this week.

However, the Cats' move to trade their pick 14 for St Kilda ruckman Rowan Marshall into North Melbourne's eight-year offer worth more than $11 million, which was revealed by AFL.com.au on Thursday, has turned Blakey's head and has vaulted the Roos right into strong contention.

Blakey's family history at the Roos is significant, with his father John a two-time premiership player at the club, and he had the choice to join North as a father-son or Sydney as an Academy player in 2018 in his draft year. He chose Sydney, where he lived and where John was part of the club's coaching staff.

Geelong would need to move multiple players in trades to get back in the picture for Blakey, having not yet absolutely jumped into the picture as the club's board made a call on its preparedness to chase Blakey given the complexities of the Pullman Hotel scandal.

The Cats and then the Suns had entered the past few days as Blakey's leading contenders, before the Kangaroos made clear their intentions.

North Melbourne holds pick No.5, Gold Coast will get pick No.7 for losing Ben King and St Kilda now holds picks eight and 14 this year, giving all clubs draft collateral in prospective deals, the same for the draft pick-loaded Bombers.

The flow-on effect for the Roos if Blakey chooses them as his preferred home will be how they can also do a trade for Adelaide's contracted defender Nick Murray. – Callum Twomey

MEGA DEAL TALKS GO ON

CLUBS have been locked in private talks on a mega deal that has been workshopped with the AFL that would sit separate to Zak Butters' move to the Western Bulldogs as a free agent.

The Bulldogs will on Friday lodge paperwork for Butters' move as a free agent before the 5pm deadline, which would give the Power three days to decide whether they take pick No.5 as compensation or match the deal and force a trade.

But the Power and Western Bulldogs have been curating a mega deal that has involved, at stages, up to seven clubs and a number of players, draft picks and future selections swapping hands.

Melbourne, Richmond, Carlton, Hawthorn and North Melbourne have been a part of various scenarios in the mega deal, which could include Hudson O'Keeffe (Western Bulldogs) and Finn Maginness (Western Bulldogs) getting to their respective new homes and draft positions changing.

The AFL has had oversight on the various permutations and proposed deals, with the clubs working with the League's player movement team to assess the trades and each club's outputs from the deal standing on its own merits separate to Butters' move to the Dogs under free agency.

Clubs have remained extremely tightlipped on the details as the discussions and variations have been worked through in recent days in a deal that will shape the whole period if it is ticked off.

If not, then the Power would be forced to trade and match the bid on Butters and do a deal focused more on the Bulldogs. – Callum Twomey 

DEES, LIONS MEET OVER YOUNG FORWARD

MELBOURNE has put forward pick No.47 in initial discussions with Brisbane over youngster Will McLachlan.

The two clubs met on Thursday afternoon after McLachlan requested a trade to the Demons earlier this week, despite rival interest from the Bombers and a contract offer to stay at the Lions.

Early talks revolved around Melbourne's No.47 selection, though Brisbane is expected to demand more for the uncontracted forward.

The Demons had earlier this week offered their No.47 pick to the Kangaroos for Zane Duursma, though that offer was also swiftly rejected.

McLachlan, a lively 181cm forward, has played seven AFL games across two and a half years for the Lions but impressed at VFL level this season to kick 35 goals from 11 games.

"Pretty much everyone enjoyed watching Will that year when he got picked in the mid-season draft," Melbourne list boss Tim Lamb told AFL.com.au's Gettable on Thursday.

"Obviously, every club in Victoria would've tracked Will's development at Brisbane. He had a pretty serious quad injury this year, which kept him out. He had some pretty strong VFL form and they're a three-time reigning premiership team.

"He got stuck behind a collection of … I don't think it's outrageous to say the best medium and small forwards in the competition at Brisbane. He had a lack of opportunity and we think he's got some promise to develop his game moving forward." – Riley Beveridge

SUNS MAKE MOVE FOR ANOTHER HAWK

GOLD Coast plans to fly Sam Butler up for a tour of the Suns' headquarters over the weekend after making a late move for the Hawk.

Butler is contracted at Hawthorn for 2027, but after struggling for opportunities is open to a move after deciding to re-sign this time last year for two more seasons. 

The 23-year-old played only eight games this year after featuring in all three finals in 2025 for a total of 33 across six seasons at the club.

West Coast had maintained a level of interest in Butler but it won't pursue the mid-forward this Trade Period. 

Gold Coast coach Damien Hardwick and GM Craig Cameron flew to Melbourne on Thursday to meet with Sydney defender Nick Blakey and are set to meet with Butler before the deadline. 

The Suns landed a commitment from Aidan Schubert to move from Hawthorn and could include Butler in the trade. – Josh Gabelich

BULLDOG SET FOR ROOKIE CHANCE

FOOTSCRAY star Cooper Craig-Peters has met with Western Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge and is poised to finally land a chance in the AFL. 

The 24-year-old won his second best and fairest in September after another eye-catching year in the VFL, earning selection in the Team of the Year squad and a top 10 spot in the MVP.

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The Western Bulldogs are looking to add Craig-Peters to the AFL list under the recently introduced additional Category B rookie spot for First Nations players. 

Craig-Peters is also on the radar of Essendon and has met with the Bombers, who are looking for more mature-age options across the Trade Period, draft and pre-season supplemental selection period, with VFL star Tyler Sellers also in the club's sights.

A small inside midfielder, Craig-Peters has been considered by the Bulldogs before, especially after he won the Norm Goss Medal for best on ground in Footscray's premiership win in 2025. 

But with Tom Liberatore and Adam Treloar retiring, the Bulldogs are in a position to finally reward his sustained form in the VFL. 

The additional Category B rookie spot dedicated for First Nations players is optional and clubs can sign players for up to three years, although one-year deals are expected to be mostly offered. – Josh Gabelich

SUN IN DEVILS' SIGHTS

GOLD Coast midfielder Alex Davies is firmly on Tasmania's radar to be an original Devils player in 2028.

AFL.com.au revealed in July that the industry feel was the Devils had two players locked in for their initial group of recruits, with Tiger Rhyan Mansell widely seen to be in that group.

But Davies is also seen as a red-hot chance to be an addition for the Devils at this stage, having recently signed only a one-year deal through to the end 2027 when he will come out of contract and would qualify as a free agent to Tasmania. 

Davies is also understood to have contemplated whether to join Tasmania's VFL list for next year and then just stay on for the club's inaugural AFL season following that but chose to sign the one-year extension with the Suns.

The former Suns Academy graduate has played 46 games in six years with the club but is a tough, hard-nosed, big-bodied midfield option. 

The Devils have been vocal in their pursuit of having around six players committed by the end of this year with handshake agreements for their debut season.

They are strongly pursuing Beau McCreery, as revealed by AFL.com.au in April, while the likes of Alex Pearce and Tom Green are other key targets. – Callum Twomey

CLUBS KEEP TABS ON BOMBER

ESSENDON'S former top-10 pick Nik Cox is in contract limbo, but other clubs are keeping tabs on him as a potential train-on option if the Bombers don't give him a deal.

The Bombers have kept a handful of players going through the Trade Period without contracts for next year, including Cox, Thomas Edwards, Jayden Nguyen and Kayle Gerreyn, with the club to make their calls after next week's trade deadline.

Cox returned from his concussion issues for this season and played eight senior games, largely as a forward.

He also performed well at VFL level as the Bombers made the preliminary final, with the versatile tall playing as a key marking option in attack.

Cox burst onto the scene in 2021 when he played 22 games and won a Telstra AFL Rising Star nomination but has been restricted to 39 games in the five seasons since.

Clubs have continued to monitor him and could look to give him a chance as a delisted free agent or even as a pre-season supplemental selection player if the Bombers decide not to give him a new deal. – Callum Twomey

SWANS LOOK TO KICKSTART PRE-AGENT CHATS

SYDNEY is keen to kickstart contract talks with 2027 free agents Chad Warner and Tom McCartin across the summer, with both likely to be among the most in-demand players in the competition next season.

The Swans had started early talks with McCartin earlier this year, but didn't progress on those chats, while Warner considered his future when he was last out of contract in 2025 but ultimately re-signed through until free agency via a two-year extension.

Warner is likely to again attract significant interest next year, particularly in his home state of Western Australia, with West Coast likely to go hard at the speedy midfielder.

The club lost key forward Joel Amartey to free agency this season, after he accepted a five-year offer from Carlton, and will subsequently look to tie down both McCartin and Warner ahead of time next season.

"We've got a number of out-of-contract players next year, which we'll work our way through," Sydney's list boss Chris Keane told AFL.com.au's Gettable on Thursday.

"Specifically with Tom and Chad, we're constantly talking to their management groups and that's no different to any other player on our list. You're talking 18 or 24 months ahead of when they come out of contract.

"We'll work our way through that. We've continued to have those conversations and we'll continue to do so over the summer mostly likely." – Riley Beveridge