TOM PAPLEY'S manager Winston Rous says the Sydney forward faces "challenges" heading back to the Swans after his trade request fell through.
Papley's bid to land at Carlton – and return to Victoria for personal reasons – was denied by Sydney, where the lively goalkicker is contracted for a further four years.
The Blues offered the Swans their pick nine, with a swap of later selections also on the table, but the deal got tangled up in Sydney's chase of Essendon's Joe Daniher, with both players staying at their clubs.
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Rous, of Phoenix Management, said he was hopeful the 23-year-old could settle back into the Swans.
"I'm disappointed for Tom and the other players who didn't get to where they wanted to go. But that's the reality of what can happen when a player is contracted," Rous told AFL.com.au.
"There are going to be some challenges ahead for Tom in the coming months, and we will look at ways in partnership with Sydney to support him.
"A lot has changed for Tom in the last 12 months since he extended his contract, and hopefully the next 12 months can see him back feeling more settled in Sydney."
Carlton and North Melbourne met with Papley before he made the Blues his preferred destination, being the club more willing to accommodate the demands of Sydney. But with the Swans unable to broker a deal with Essendon for Daniher, Papley's move was unable to be completed.
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Rous said he had pushed to make Papley's trade separate to the Daniher discussions.
"They made their position clear all the way along, and as a contracted player we understood all the possible outcomes and they had an understanding of his circumstances and were willing to assist if they could get Joe Daniher," he said.
"We wanted the deal to be looked at independent of the Daniher deal but it was made clear that in the last 24-48 hours before the deadline that wouldn't be the case."
It was one of two deals the Blues couldn't complete on the final day of the trade period, including their pursuit of Gold Coast midfielder Jack Martin.
The Blues could land Martin through the national or pre-season draft after talks broke down with the Suns, but will have to wait until next year for another bid at Papley.
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Rous said the Blues had followed through on their commitment to getting a deal done.
"I couldn't fault Carlton, they were transparent when the process started on the lengths they would go to in order to get a trade done for Tom and understood the challenges given the high value that Sydney placed on him," he said.
"They couldn't have done any more."
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