Every Thursday AFL.com.au presents Inside Trading, with breaking news and the best analysis of the AFL trade landscape covering contracts, re-signings, free agents, the AFL Draft and industry insights.
GRESHAM WEIGHS INTEREST
JADE Gresham will soon decide his next steps after meeting with clubs in recent weeks, with the St Kilda free agent catching rival interest.
As revealed on Gettable last month, Essendon has had interest in Gresham as a free agent option and remains in a group of what is around three clubs who have interest in the Saint.
St Kilda has not got an offer in front of Gresham, who this week had his exit meeting with the club and said he would spend time thinking on his future with the Saints crashing out of the finals.
Richmond met with Gresham but it is understood that is unlikely to be his destination.
The Bombers are also looking at Brisbane small forward Kai Lohmann, who is out of contract – the only first-round pick from the 2021 draft who has not re-signed.
As reported on Gettable this week, the Victorian has caught the interest of the Bombers. His season ended on the weekend after he broke his collarbone falling after a high mark. – Callum Twomey
GIANTS EYE CROW
GREATER Western Sydney is eyeing a brotherly reunion, with the Giants having interest in Adelaide forward Elliott Himmelberg in this year's trade period.
Himmelberg is the younger brother of current Giants star Harry, who re-signed this year as a free agent at the Giants on a six-year extension.
Elliott Himmelberg played three games for Adelaide this year and is contracted for 2024, so a trade would need to be struck for the versatile tall/ruckman.
The 25-year-old has played 41 games for the Crows after being drafted with pick No.51 in 2016, a year after Harry was picked by the Giants as an Academy selection. – Callum Twomey and Riley Beveridge
FREE AGENT NEARS CALL
ADELAIDE'S restricted free agent Tom Doedee is nearing crunch time on his contract call as he weighs his future.
The Crows key defender has long been linked to Brisbane, whose interest in Doedee was revealed on Gettable in June, with the Lions looking to add to their back half.
Adelaide has a short-term offer in front of Doedee but the 26-year-old has been open in stating his decision-making process could come down to more security being presented at rival options.
Sydney shapes as a club that could pivot for a late pursuit of Doedee if it doesn't secure fellow restricted free agent Ben McKay, with the Swans one of three clubs McKay is considering alongside Essendon and Hawthorn. The Bombers have held long interest in McKay, having met with the key defender in July.
Collingwood is another club to have been linked with interest in Doedee as it surveys that market.
Doedee's second knee reconstruction will likely see him sidelined for the first half of next season. – Callum Twomey
CHOL ON CLUB RADARS
GOLD Coast forward Mabior Chol remains a trade option for clubs who are looking at adding to their tall forward and ruck stocks.
Chol has two years remaining on his deal with the Suns, but as reported on Gettable last month, the former Tiger has been scouted as a trade prospect.
Adelaide and Brisbane are among the clubs who have shown interest in the 61-gamer.
Chol remains a part of the Suns' VFL finals series and is expected to focus on his future at the end of their run.
The 26-year-old's management last week released a statement on Chol, saying that he was enjoying his time at the Suns but "wants to be a regular at AFL level".
"We are aware and have been approached by a number of clubs that are interested in Mabior due to his high-end talent to see where everything sits," said Ashley Blair from Pacific Sports Management. – Callum Twomey
BLUES TRIO IN TALKS
CARLTON is in talks over new deals for David Cuningham, Lachie Fogarty and Caleb Marchbank, with the trio of Blues each playing important roles in last week's thrilling finals victory over Sydney.
The three players were the only members of Carlton's elimination final team still without deals for next season, though it's understood the Blues are planning to retain them and have opened contract discussions with each.
All three have dealt with form and fitness problems throughout their time at Ikon Park, but have since played important roles in the second half of the season as Carlton began to resurrect its finals chances.
Cuningham and Fogarty both returned to the Blues' team at the start of their nine-match winning run midway through the campaign, while Marchbank has featured in six consecutive matches to finish the year. It comes after they collectively played just seven games last season.
As revealed on AFL.com.au's Gettable last week, Carlton free agent Jack Silvagni is also closing on a new deal to remain at Ikon Park and could return to the team ahead of Friday night's semi-final against Melbourne. – Riley Beveridge
BULLDOGS FORWARD WEIGHING FUTURE
OUT-OF-CONTRACT Western Bulldogs forward Buku Khamis is contemplating his future after being starved of opportunities in 2023, despite a strong season in the VFL.
The 23-year-old managed only one game this season following the arrival of Rory Lobb and the continued emergence of Jamarra Ugle-Hagan.
Khamis kicked 41 goals from 18 appearances for Footscray, including five in last Saturday's semi-final loss to Box Hill after three in the first final against Casey, with only Gold Coast pair Chris Burgess and Brodie McLaughlin kicking more.
It is understood that the Western Bulldogs have tabled an offer for 2024 to Khamis' management, but multiple clubs have enquired about his services, with the athletic utility to weigh up his options over the coming weeks before making a decision.
Khamis joined the club as category B rookie via the next generation academy in 2018 and has played 10 games since making his debut in 2021.
DRAFT HUB Click here for the latest draft news
The Bulldogs delisted Tim O'Brien, Robbie McComb and Cody Raak on Monday after Mitch Hannan was delisted last month and Josh Bruce retired.
Taylor Duryea, Hayden Crozier, Toby McLean and Roarke Smith are all yet to receive deals for next season and are likely to be forced to wait until after the trade period next month. – Josh Gabelich
LIONS RECRUIT SET FOR ANOTHER YEAR
IRISHMAN Darragh Joyce is set to continue his AFL journey for an eighth season after making the most of his second chance at Brisbane.
The 26-year-old was delisted by St Kilda after playing 13 games across six seasons before the Lions added him to the rookie list during the pre-season supplemental selection period last pre-season.
Joyce has provided extra key defensive coverage at the Gabba, playing five of the first six games of 2023 for Chris Fagan before producing a strong season in the VFL.
With Marcus Adams announcing his retirement due to his concussion battle, Joyce has been offered a one-year extension to remain at the Lions.
Brisbane has three Irish imports on its list with Conor McKenna set to remain at the club for two more years after playing all 24 games since returning to the AFL, while James Madden signed a one-year extension in July. – Josh Gabelich
BOMBERS DUO IN LIMBO
ESSENDON pair Will Snelling and Patrick Voss face uncertain waits, with the Bombers duo remaining without contracts for next season.
Both players remain out of contract and are set to have to hold until the trade period before any having any certainty on their futures.
The Bombers have already delisted five players – James Stewart, Anthony Munkara, Alastair Lord, Rhett Montgomerie and Cian McBride – this off-season after their poor end to the season.
Snelling has played 64 games at AFL level for the Bombers since being a mid-season rookie pick in 2019, after a single game for Port Adelaide in 2016.
Voss, a strong-bodied forward, is yet to make his AFL debut after being a rookie selection for the Bombers at the end of 2021. – Callum Twomey
McKERCHER READY FOR MOVE
POTENTIAL top-five pick Colby McKercher says clubs have questioned whether he would be tempted to return home to Tasmania one day, but says he is committed to relocating interstate later this year.
McKercher has enjoyed a stellar final season of junior football, with his campaign reaching a pinnacle when he averaged 32.8 disposals to help spearhead the Allies to their first ever national championships title.
The speedy and agile left-footed midfielder has also played an influential role in Tasmania's path to this weekend's Coates Talent League preliminary final, which followed the state winning a 19th AFL license earlier this year.
However, speaking on AFL.com.au's trade and draft show Gettable earlier this week, McKercher said he likely wouldn't consider moving back to Tasmania ahead of its entry into the competition and said he's looking forward to relocating in the coming months.
"(Clubs) have asked it a fair bit," McKercher said.
"Also, you can't help but see things online. People saying, 'This person might want to go home to Tassie'. I don't know about the other boys, we haven't had a conversation about it, but I've always been ready for a move.
"I've dreamt of being an AFL player since I was probably five, so I've always figured I was going to move away if it was to happen. I'm so ready to move away and I could live over here forever, there's so much stuff to do." – Riley Beveridge
DOGS SET FOR BUSY OFF-SEASON
THE WESTERN Bulldogs are hopeful that an active off-season will inject new life into their premiership push next year, with the club looking to immediately bounce back from missing the finals in 2023.
The Dogs endured a disappointing campaign this season, their first without finals in five years, but have the ability to get flexible with list spots and are in contention to leap up the draft order and snare Gold Coast's available No.4 selection.
The club has also been linked with uncontracted Brisbane forward Kai Lohmann and Melbourne free agent James Jordon, while likely first-round pick Jordan Croft is also headed to the Dogs under father-son rules after a solid season as a 201cm key forward prospect.
Speaking on AFL.com.au's trade and draft show Gettable last week, the Dogs' list and recruiting boss Sam Power said it put the club in a good position to attack the player movement market in the coming months.
"We're open to being active," Power said.
"We've got a lot of flexibility at the moment, with list spots and what we might be able to do. We've got a really open mind as well, whether that's through the trade period or through the draft.
"Going into every acquisition period, we want to improve the list and get better. But we won't go out and bring a lot of players in just for the sake of doing it. It'll be very targeted, which we have been over a period of time now and pretty balanced as well in terms of whether that's through the trade period or draft." – Riley Beveridge
TRADE TROUBLE
CLUBS are expecting plenty of trade stand-offs this year as the value of picks after the top 30 decreases in the eyes of list managers and recruiters.
With a shallow draft pool expected – clubs are predicting less than 60 picks are used at the national draft – there is set to be a flow-on for a number of deals that otherwise may be worth second- and third-round selections.
TRADE HUB All the latest player movement news
Clubs opting to use three or fewer draft picks may simply not see a value in later draft picks being exchanged for wantaway players, with impasses expected to be common in the trade period due to clubs simply not wanting to use picks past a certain range.
It will likely leave clubs pushing to instead trade for future selections, but the reverse effect of the draft class is that clubs keen to trade in players this year will be largely wanting to use 2023 selections to get deals done. – Callum Twomey
FAMOUS FOOTY NAME EMERGES AS DRAFT CHANCE
THE SON of former Western Bulldogs chief executive Dennis Galimberti has made a late impression on scouts to push his draft stocks.
Billy McGee-Galimberti has been a regular member of the Sandringham Dragons' line-up this season but played perhaps the game of his campaign on Sunday in the Coates Talent League elimination final against the Northern Knights.
The 180cm prospect gathered 28 disposals, 10 marks and six rebound-50s as he continues to show some of his dash from defence.
A good kick of the ball, McGee-Galimberti has also used his speed to take the game on and catch the eye.
McGee-Galimberti has played 11 games for the Dragons this season averaging 18 disposals, while also playing at school level for St Kevin's College in Melbourne.
His father was a long-serving chief executive of Footscray between 1986 and 1996, playing a pivotal role in the Dogs avoiding a merger with Fitzroy. – Callum Twomey
