Get all the latest news in the trade, free agency and draft landscape every week 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. 

BATTLE LOOMS FOR EXCITING DRAFTEE

MELBOURNE and Gold Coast are set to battle it out for the son of former Demons ruckman Jeff White, with youngster Kalani White eligible to join the Demons as a father-son and Suns as an Academy player. 

Kalani, a 200cm defender, has lived on the Gold Coast with his family since the end of Jeff's career in 2008, making the Suns eligible to pick him under northern Academy rules when he hits his draft season next year.

But he also qualifies as a father-son to the Demons, where Jeff was a star ruckman for 236 games for 11 years. Kalani is a member of the Suns Academy and will play in the Coates Talent League this season for Gold Coast, but has also spent time with the Demons' father-son program as his development grows. 

"It is a unique position for him. He's very humble, very down to earth about it. He's focused on his footy and he's loving the opportunity he's got with the Suns. That was one of the things we spoke about a couple of years ago about the opportunity to play against the Victorian kids and now with the Suns he's so excited," Jeff White told AFL.com.au this week. 

"On the fifth of May, which is actually his birthday, he's playing against the Dandenong Stingrays, which is my old club so he's pumped. 

"He's really looking forward to it and having interest from Melbourne and the Suns, he likes being a part of it and talking to the recruiting officers and finding out what he needs to improve on. It's a unique position to be in but in saying that he's very dedicated to getting better."

Melbourne invited the Whites to training in December, and Kalani, who has also excelled as a junior basketballer, has gotten to know a number of Demons stars. 

"Jake Lever has been unbelievable for him. We've gone to a few training sessions they've had at Gold Coast and Brisbane and Jake has been amazing for him, even reaching out to him on social media. He ran into Christian Petracca when we went and watched the golf in Brisbane and Christian said 'Come with me' and he went walking around with him," he said.

"Melbourne has been great and so has the Gold Coast, they've been fantastic with the way they've opened their doors and the training and expertise they've been able to provide him. I couldn't fault both clubs."

A former Melbourne teammate of White's, James Frawley, is the backline coach of the Suns Academy, with Jeff saying Kalani was keen to develop this year before getting to his decision next season. If White performs well early in the season it is likely he features as a bottom-ager for the Allies at the mid-year championships.

"He's just found his feet in different sports. I never forced him into that space, he came across some posters of mine that were in the garage and said 'Daddy I want to do this and give it a go' and away he went," Jeff said.

"It certainly is appealing, I'm not going to lie, in the situation of him pulling on the red and blue. He's followed Melbourne his whole life so there's certainly appeal there. And there's the appeal to stay home and play in front of his family and friends. It is a unique position and he'll hopefully have the opportunity to make that decision next year."

It is a position others have faced, with Nick Blakey choosing to stick with the Swans as an Academy player in 2018 rather than join North Melbourne or Brisbane as a father-son. Bailey Scott could have joined Gold Coast as an Academy player in the same year but decided to join North Melbourne as a father-son, having also qualified as a father-son at Geelong. – Callum Twomey

KANGAS TO LOCK AWAY ANOTHER YOUNG GUN

NORTH Melbourne is closing on a deal for another of its budding young stars, with midfielder Tom Powell in talks over a two-year extension.

Powell, who was one of the club's most exciting talents across pre-season, continued his impressive summer with 26 disposals and six clearances in last Saturday's round one defeat to Greater Western Sydney.

The South Australian had been due to come out of contract at Arden Street later this season, though it's understood his impending new deal will take the former first-round pick through until at least 2026.

Talks over a fresh deal for Powell follow a series of other Kangaroos youngsters committing their future to the club recently, led by last year's AFL Rising Star winner Harry Sheezel signing through until 2030 earlier this summer.

George Wardlaw (2026), Jy Simpkin (2029) and Nick Larkey (2029) have also extended their contracts at the club over the last 12 months, a period where the Kangaroos have also welcomed five more first-round picks.

Colby McKercher (pick No.2 in last year's national draft), Zane Duursma (pick No.4), Taylor Goad (pick No.20), Wil Dawson (pick No.22) and Riley Hardeman (pick No.23) are among those to have arrived, adding to the exciting crop of young talent developing under coach Alastair Clarkson. – Riley Beveridge

DOGS MAKE BAILEY OFFER

THE Western Bulldogs have put forward a two-year extension to re-sign Bailey Smith as they move to lock in their three big guns.

However, Smith is expected to wait until deeper into the season before making a contract decision as he gets into the different stages of his recovery from his knee reconstruction.

Geelong, Hawthorn and Collingwood are all expected to be suitors for Smith through the season as he weighs his contract call, while the Dogs' two-year offer would take him through to free agency at the end of his eighth year in 2026. 

Along with Smith, the Dogs' other contract priorities are star free agent Tim English and gun young forward Jamarra Ugle-Hagan.

English is expected to hold until deeper into the season amid interest from West Coast, which is believed to have met with the ruckman last time he was out of contract, while Ugle-Hagan is the subject of significant interest from a number of clubs.

Gettable revealed last week Richmond was in the hunt, with Hawthorn also chasing the former No.1 pick. Collingwood, Essendon and Sydney have also been linked. 

However, the Bulldogs have remained confident with where talks are placed, with the potential of a two-year deal or four-year extension through to free agency. – Callum Twomey

CATS BEGIN 'KOLO' TALKS

GEELONG has kickstarted discussions with the management of defender Jake Kolodjashnij, who is keen to again re-sign at GMHBA Stadium as he prepares to hit free agency for a second time.

Kolodjashnij is one of the few established key defenders on the market this season but is determined to remain at the Cats, where he has played 175 games and became a premiership player in 2022.

Geelong held talks with Kolodjashnij's manager, Kapital Sports Group's Marty Pask, last week around a potential deal for the 28-year-old Tasmanian, who is hopeful of sorting out his future at the club in the coming weeks.

"We met them last week," Pask told AFL.com.au's Gettable.

"(Geelong's head of football) Andrew Mackie and I agreed just to keep talking through this situation. He's been a Geelong player for a very long time and they would like him to continue being a Geelong player.

"The philosophy has always got to be to work with the club first. You should always be working with their clubs first and foremost to ascertain where they're at, what they want to do, and then from there you go in eyes wide open and see what's best.

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"In 'Kolo's' situation, there's no doubt he wants to remain a Geelong player. We'd like to [get it done soon], absolutely."

Kolodjashnij is into his 11th season at Geelong, having signed a three-year extension when he first hit free agency back in 2021. – Riley Beveridge

RISE IN MID-SEASON DRAFT PICKS 

THE RUN of early season-ending knee injuries around the competition has opened up more potential selections for the mid-season rookie draft.

The League will again hold its mid-season intake, with clubs either carrying vacant list spots into the year or opening positions due to long-term injuries or player retirements. 

There are currently 10 potential open spots for the mid-season rookie draft. 

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Fremantle and Gold Coast entered the year with a leftover space on their lists after not filling them through the pre-season supplemental selection period, while another seven clubs have potential spots available to be activated as mid-season selections.

Essendon, due to Jaiden Hunter's knee injury, and the Western Bulldogs, with Bailey Smith's knee, also decided against filling their list with a pre-season rookie signing so both have spots, while Carlton could have two due to the season-ending ACL injuries for Jack Silvagni and Sam Docherty. The same goes for North Melbourne, who lost Josh Goater to an Achilles rupture last weekend.

Richmond will now have the option of using a mid-season pick after last week's knee injury to defender Josh Gibcus and Melbourne can have a selection with the concussion-forced retirement of midfielder Angus Brayshaw.

Collingwood added three players as SSP signings before the late February deadline but could have had a fourth if they listed Dan McStay inactive due to his knee injury. 

However, the Pies are hoping McStay can continue his excellent recovery and make it back in time for the end of the season so would be unlikely to activate a mid-season pick for him.

Last year 13 players were selected at the mid-season intake. – Callum Twomey

FLAG TIGER KEEN FOR MORE

RICHMOND premiership wingman Kamdyn McIntosh is keen to sign on at the Tigers as the unrestricted free agent enters his 12th season at Punt Road.

McIntosh, who played in the club's 2017 and 2020 flag triumphs, was out of contract last year before hitting a trigger to secure another season with Richmond through to the end of 2024. 

It means he begins this year under new coach Adem Yze as one of more than 20 Tigers unsigned beyond this season. 

His manager, Colin Young from Young Guns Sports Management, told AFL.com.au's trade and draft show Gettable that he had spoken with Tigers list boss Blair Hartley over the pre-season about McIntosh's hopes of signing on at the Tigers. 

"I was really fortunate to be able to watch their match sim and sat with Blair Hartley for most of the game. We were talking about Kam and he's got to go through a new coach and the list structure has changed a little bit," Young said. 

"We'll sit down in about three or four weeks and have a chat to see where Blair's at. Kam's pretty keen to go long-term with Richmond but it will be up to the club and what they want to do in the early stages."

McIntosh, who turns 30 next month, has played 170 games for the Tigers since being drafted in 2012. – Callum Twomey

HAWKS MISS ON NEXT GEN HOPE

EXCITING draft prospect Christian Moraes won't be eligible as a Next Generation Academy talent to Hawthorn after the Hawks asked the question of the AFL on his eligibility. 

Moraes shapes as a potential top-10 pick in this year's draft after impressing last year for the Eastern Ranges, where he played 16 games and was prolific through the midfield where he averaged 26 disposals. 

The 17-year-old's father was born in Brazil, however it is a country that doesn't leave the midfielder able to qualify for NGA access.

Under the current NGA rules, the player has to either be born in a non-English speaking country, or have at least one parent born in Asia, Africa or Oceania or have both parents born in another non-English speaking country outside of those regions. 

Moraes comes from a strong basketball background and uses his clean hands well in his football and carried his form through to the Coates Talent League Grand Final last year, when he had 24 disposals and a goal. 

He trained with the Hawks over the pre-season as part of his AFL Academy program but the club has been denied any priority access on him as a NGA player. – Callum Twomey

ASSISTANT COACH TO BE PART OF SWANS' RECRUITING PLAN

THIS year is a year of transition for Sydney's list management department, with new head of football Leon Cameron part of a collaborative setup that will also include backline coach Mark McVeigh closer to the AFL Draft.

Chris Keane has been promoted from senior recruiting analyst to head of list strategy after five seasons at the Swans, following four as performance and opposition analyst at Greater Western Sydney. 

With Simon Dalrymple moving to St Kilda as talent identification and player movement manager, Sydney has chosen to rejig its recruiting team, starting without a designated list manager for 2024. 

Veteran recruiter Kinnear Beatson, who has been at the Swans since 2006 after a 12-month stint with Adelaide following 12 years at Brisbane, is now Sydney's national recruiting manager and will help groom Keane over the course of this year as part of a succession plan. 

It means Beatson, Keane, Cameron and Charlie Gardiner, who relocated to the Swans' Melbourne office at the end of last season, will all be involved in list management decisions this year. 

Sydney will add another person to its list management team in a recruiting and analyst role in the coming weeks after interviewing candidates to replace Dalrymple this month. 

Keane initially joined the Swans as a data expert after studying a statistics degree at RMIT University but has risen up the ranks internally, impressing many at the club, as well as one who recently left. Don Pyke pushed for Keane to be considered as West Coast list manager after he returned to the Eagles as CEO. Keane is understood to have not interviewed for the role, recommitting to the Swans instead. 

McVeigh will focus on his new role as one of John Longmire's assistant coaches this season, but is expected to spend time in recruiting closer to the draft after coaching the Allies to the under-18 title in 2023 and working with the Swans' Academy, following his departure from Greater Western Sydney. – Josh Gabelich