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.

PORT'S TOP PICK UP FOR GRABS

PORT Adelaide will field offers for its pick No.5 after Zak Butters' compensation pick landed on a huge Friday of activity.

The Power's draft hand is now placed at No.5, 7 and 12, with the No.7 and 12 picks going to leave Port able to match a bid on Dougie Cochrane with a minimal points deficit if a bid comes on him at No.1.

It means Port has already started talking to clubs about trading out or splitting its No.5 selection, which will now be up for grabs in talks for the rest of this trade period and potentially beyond into the pick swap selection window.

The Power negotiated a complex mega deal involving the Western Bulldogs, Melbourne, Hawthorn and Carlton that was ticked off by the League on Friday morning that saw them trade back from pick No.4 but also give up three picks in 2027 and three picks in 2028.

They instead crunched in those selections to end up with two more future first-rounders for next year, with the intention to stack points to be able to match possible early bids for tied pair Louis Salopek and Zemes Pilot.

There will be no shortage of interest in their pick No.5 being for sale given it gets a club right into the top zone of the draft, with many clubs viewing the draft as having a clear top six or so selections.

Essendon is among the clubs that have been looking to push up the draft board and has spoken to other clubs about using its draft hand – it currently holds picks 17, 20, 27 after its No.1 pick – to push up the order. – Callum Twomey

NORTH ALL IN ON DUO

NORTH Melbourne is all in on landing both of its key targets this trade period, after Nick Blakey joined Nick Murray in requesting trades to the club.

And the Roos using pick No.6 to get deals done will have draft implications as well.

AFL.com.au revealed on Friday morning that Blakey had nominated the Kangaroos as his preferred destination with five years running on his contract, having had a medical and visited Arden Street earlier on.

North has looked at whether it could split pick No.5 into multiple early selections and then use one to be part of the Blakey transaction and another to be used to satisfy Adelaide for Murray.

The Roos had already begun canvassing clubs about bringing their future first-round pick into the 2026 draft pool to see if there was any appetite from rivals for it to then use in a Murray deal before the Blakey decision picked up pace on Thursday and Friday.

Either way North will be using pick No.5 as a centrepiece to how they get things done, which would see the Roos forfeit the bonus compensation pick under the League's new bidding rules this season.

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Had they kept pick No.5 and not had any trade targets come in, and the pick be shuffled down the order by at least one spot, the Roos would have gained an extra second-round selection immediately after their pick.

But with it set to be part of their activity, there would be only three clubs – Essendon, Richmond and West Coast – who would own their natural top-five selection, meaning a maximum of three extra second-round selections added to the draft. – Callum Twomey

TIGERS' COLEMAN INTEREST

RICHMOND is among the clubs that have registered interest in Brisbane defender Keidean Coleman. 

Coleman is contracted for 2027 but open to a move after a challenging few seasons with his body since the 2023 Grand Final. 

The Tigers are only expected to make a play if Jayden Short is traded, but that move to Collingwood hasn't made progress at this stage. 

The Magpies are the sole suitor and not currently prepared to entertain using pick No.28 on the two-time premiership half-back, who is contracted at Punt Road for two more seasons.

Brisbane's preference is to retain the 26-year-old, but will consider a compelling offer for Coleman. 

Essendon is another club considering Coleman and currently hold picks 1, 17, 21, 27 and 80, with salary cap space to make a compelling offer if they choose to proceed, although they have other targets they are chasing between now and the deadline. 

The Western Bulldogs explored a move for 'Kiddy' late in the season, but ruled themselves out when Port Adelaide midfielder Zak Butters committed to the club. 

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With Brisbane not budging on its strong stance, the clock ticking on the trade period and Coleman a free agent in 2027, a move appears difficult at this stage.

Coleman displayed his game-changing ability across the 2023 finals series before rupturing his ACL in the first game of 2024, before injury issues across the past two seasons prevented him from becoming a premiership player under Chris Fagan. – Josh Gabelich

HAWKS-SUNS DEAL IN THE WORKS

A DEAL sending Aidan Schubert to Gold Coast will progress over the weekend, with the framework of a trade already in place.

At the centre of the deal is Gold Coast's 2028 second-round pick, which would head to the Suns, but the clubs are also expected to swap 2028 first-round picks.

Another pick slide could be involved in the deal for Schubert from the 2027 draft, with the likelihood that Hawks forward Sam Butler is also a part of the deal.

Butler toured the Suns on Friday and told Hawthorn later on that he wanted a trade to the club.

His move is likely to be tied into the Schubert trade, with Butler to add some more depth to the Suns' forward half.

Hawthorn's pick swapping also has another consideration in mind, with the Hawks having access to NGA prospect Keenan Boi this year. Boi is a fast and smart half-forward with real ability in the front half who could attract a bid inside the top-40 picks. – Callum Twomey  

KANGAS ADDRESS W GROUP ON BLAKEY CHASE

NORTH Melbourne chief executive Jen Watt addressed the club's AFLW playing group and wider women's program regarding its pursuit of Sydney star Nick Blakey.

It's understood players and staff of the Kangas' ultra-successful women's program were spoken to about the side's chase of Blakey on a lucrative eight-year contract and invited to ask questions regarding its pursuit of the Swans defender.

The conversation occurred as part of North Melbourne's regular all-club briefings on significant announcements, which are generally led by Watt.

Blakey was one of five Sydney players suspended by the club for breaching behavioural standards back in August, following a late-night incident that sparked an ongoing Victoria Police investigation.

He has subsequently sought a way out of the Swans due to remaining tensions as a result of his suspension, nominating the Kangas as his preferred new home on Friday morning.

Blakey was courted by a number of other sides – including Gold Coast, St Kilda, Geelong and Essendon – but opted for North Melbourne, where he has a long family history and having received a lucrative eight-year contract offer from the club. – Riley Beveridge

CROWS SEARCH FOR SHIFT UP DRAFT ORDER

ADELAIDE will search for ways to get higher up the draft board from pick No.14, as the club looks to take advantage of the last crop of young talent that's not diluted by Tasmania's arrival into the competition.

The Crows are holding firm that Nick Murray will not be traded to the Kangaroos with two years remaining on his contract, while the club doesn't expect significant arrivals throughout the remaining days of the trade period.

North Melbourne has sought ways to split its No.5 selection to unlock deals for both Murray and Sydney superstar Nick Blakey, though Adelaide is likely to hold out for a high price for the defender.

But its focus has turned to the draft with list manager Jarryd Roughead revealing the club is having conversations around how it could potentially shift up the order from the No.14 selection it currently holds.

"Potentially," Roughead told AFL.com.au's Gettable on Friday.

"We're sitting in here and trying to come up with different scenarios that we think could benefit both us and other teams. Other teams have their priorities, too. We'll try, but that doesn't mean we'll get things done.

"From our view, you're going to get someone really good [at pick No.14]. There are the boys at the top, then I think from almost pick No.6 onwards there's probably a number of players that would be in that 6-20 range and even deeper again.

"Hopefully, we can get as high as we can with the other assets that we have and hopefully we can bring in a couple of kids around that mark and really look to improve our list before Tasmania comes in." – Riley Beveridge

HAWK SIGNING BEATS OUT RIVALS

HAWTHORN beat four other Victorian clubs to sign Australian water polo player Ollie Purcell as a Category B rookie on Monday. 

The 21-year-old has signed a three-year contract with the Hawks, just weeks after representing the Aussie Sharks as a goalkeeper in Japan last month. 

Carlton wanted to recruit him in his draft year when he played football for St Kevin's in the APS, but he chose water polo. 

Mick Agresta was the Blues' national recruiting manager at the time and circled back to Purcell earlier this year in his new role as a player manager for Enhanced Sports Management to see if he was interested in exploring AFL opportunities again. 

The Blues offered Purcell a deal, along with Melbourne, Essendon and the Western Bulldogs, who have successfully developed James O'Donnell from a cricket player to a gun key defender. 

Purcell, who stands 195cm and weighs 92kg, chose the Hawks after meeting with Sam Mitchell at the Kennedy Community Centre in preliminary final week. 

After spending the past few years living in Sydney for his water polo career, Purcell will return to Melbourne ahead of pre-season.

Like O'Donnell, Purcell is a key defender and will develop beneath star trio James Sicily, Tom Barrass and Josh Battle, as well as emerging youngster Noah Mraz. – Josh Gabelich