WEST Coast is considering a left-field play to make ex-Carlton and Greater Western Sydney forward Jarrod Pickett a three-club player.
AFL.com.au understands the Eagles are weighing up a move to land the former No.4 draft pick following next month after meeting him earlier in November.
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Pickett wasn't part of the 800-plus nominees for this week's drafts but is free to join a club of his choice from December 3 via the pre-season supplemental selection period (SSP).
The 23-year-old has been training on an individual program while rehabilitating a knee injury with plans in place to have him join Eagles training after the drafts.
Introduced for the first time last year, the SSP allows any delisted player from that season to skip the drafts and walk straight to a rival club of his choice as a Category A rookie.
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After being delisted by the Blues, Pickett is eligible to join the Eagles once the SSP opens next Tuesday. It is a path Mav Weller followed after being delisted by St Kilda in August 2018, only to sit out the drafts before joining Richmond in the first week of December that year.
Former listed players including Zac Clarke (Essendon) and Shane Mumford (Greater Western Sydney) used the same window, while players overlooked in the draft, such as Sydney Stack, are also able to be selected in the SSP.
Many clubs believe the SSP provides the perfect opportunity to trial a player, such as Stack, before deciding on whether to offer them a one-year contract before mid-March.
A number of 2019 delisted players have nominated for the draft in the hope of securing another chance, however several others have opted not to with their futures all but secured elsewhere.
Harley Bennell and Mitch Brown (Melbourne), Jacob Townsend (Essendon) and Josh Walker (North Melbourne) are among delisted players set to find new homes via the SSP from December 3.
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Delisted veterans Lachie Henderson (Geelong) and Richard Douglas (Adelaide) have nominated along with Lynden Dunn, who is still training with Collingwood.
Pickett was taken by the Giants in the 2014 NAB AFL Draft before he was traded to Carlton at the end of 2016 without a senior game.
Harley Bennell is hoping for an AFL lifeline with Melbourne. Picture: AFL Photos
After 17 matches across 2018-2019, the South Fremantle product parted ways with the Blues in June after a serious knee injury in pre-season.
The Eagles are expected to have at least one rookie spot available following Friday. It could be used on Pickett, on another player in the SSP or held over for the NAB AFL Mid-Season Rookie Draft.
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Should a club's list be full following the completion of the drafts, the SSP can still be used if a player retires or sustains a long-term injury before the start of the home and away season.
Francis Watson and Harry Edwards are the Eagles' two current rookies, with a promise to re-draft delisted pair Brendon Ah Chee and Hamish Brayshaw should they not be taken by another club.
One of Brayshaw or Ah Chee could also be taken with the Eagles' final pick in the National Draft on Thursday.
