ADELAIDE has lost the battle to keep star forward Kurt Tippett, with the 25-year-old telling the club he wants out.
As Tippett is not a free agent, the Crows will seek to trade the forward to a rival club.
With his family based on the Gold Coast, the two Queensland clubs, Brisbane Lions and Gold Coast, are seen to be in the box seat to secure his services.
Tippett was linked to the Brisbane Lions earlier this year.
With former forward Brendan Fevola's hefty contract now paid out, they would have the money to afford him, while playing for the Suns would allow him to be close to his family.
But with interest from several other clubs, the situation could play out as it did for Mitch Clark, who last year told the Lions he wanted to go home to Perth, before accepting a better offer from Melbourne.
The Sydney Swans and Collingwood are also said to be interested in Tippett, who has played 104 games since he was drafted by the Crows with pick 32 at the 2006 NAB AFL Draft.
Tippett returned home to the Gold Coast twice in the second half of the year, when he was injured in round 18 and again over the Grand Final weekend.
While players and coaches had publicly expressed confidence that Tippett would stay at West Lakes, his departure seemed inevitable when he suspended contract talks with the Crows in August to "focus solely on performing on-field" according to football manager Phil Harper.
That decision came after a much-publicised meeting between his management and the Crows and after his refusal to sign a reported five-year deal worth more than $3 million.
Tippett's future looked to have played on his mind throughout the finals series, with coach Brenton Sanderson conceding the forward had performed below expectations against the Swans and Fremantle in the club's qualifying and semi finals.
The 202cm giant responded brilliantly to critics in the preliminary final against Hawthorn, dominating with 11 marks and four goals.
Adelaide captain Nathan van Berlo said the display was proof that, at his best, Tippett was easily one of the AFL's best power forwards and a crucial member of Adelaide's team.
"'Tippo's' really important and we've always outlined his importance to us; the weekend was a good example of that," he said at the time.
"He certainly demands the best defender and when he's able to perform at his best he's one of the best going around in the competition, there's no doubt about it."
Van Berlo also said there was nothing more the Crows could have done to entice Tippett to stay, a sentiment supported by the club's list manager David Noble on Tuesday.
"I can assure members and supporters that the club (including players and coaches) could not have done any more to try to convince Kurt to stay with our club," Noble said in a statement on Adelaide's website.
"In addition, we believe that our club has provided Kurt with an outstanding learning environment after drafting him as an extremely inexperienced 18-year-old in 2006.
"On top of this we have always put Kurt's best interests at the forefront as well as remunerating him at the top end of our player payments scale.
"The club has now reassessed the current list and will continue its strategy to make sure the team's needs are met so the improved performances of 2012 continue."
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Harry Thring is a reporter for AFL Media. Follow him on Twitter: @AFL_Harry
