THERE will be two very interested onlookers as Carlton meets Adelaide on Saturday.

List bosses Stephen Silvagni and Justin Reid will watch on from the MCG, eight months after completing one of the NAB AFL Draft night's first blockbuster live trades last November.

At different times this year, the trade looked like it might be a disaster for the Blues – who spent a large portion of the campaign sitting in last spot on the AFL ladder.

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However, a lot has changed over the last six weeks.

Carlton has won four of its six matches under the guidance of interim coach David Teague, while Adelaide has lost three of its past four games and is clinging to its spot in the top eight.

The respective change in both teams' ladder positions throughout this period means there is almost complete parity in what both clubs are set to achieve from the landmark deal.

As things stand, the pick No.11 Carlton is due to receive from Adelaide later this year and the pick No.19 it got last year – which it used to snare developing midfielder Liam Stocker – are worth 2277 points on the AFL's Draft Value Index (DVI).

The pick No.3 Adelaide will currently receive from Carlton is worth 2234 DVI points.

It's a minimal difference of just 43 DVI points in Carlton's favour.

The Blues completed the trade last year, having had Stocker pencilled into the top six picks on their draft board. Indeed, they have been pleased with his development this season, where he has managed five senior games after moving into a new position off half-back.

They sanctioned the deal, cautiously optimistic about rising up the ladder in 2019, but pleased regardless with the opportunity to essentially secure a 'two-for-one' trade.

Meanwhile, the Crows banked on the Blues enduring another season like 2018, when Brendon Bolton's side had finished last on the ladder after managing just two wins all year.

Adelaide had already taken two players by the time of last year's live trade, securing Chayce Jones with its own selection before claiming Ned McHenry with the pick it had received following a three-way trade involving Carlton and Sydney for Mitch McGovern.

Chayce Jones in action for the Crows. Picture: AFL Photos

Furthermore, the evenness to the trade looks as though it will remain, with significant change in ladder positions for either club also unlikely throughout the final few games.

Carlton might fall back below Melbourne into 17th on the AFL ladder, but appears unlikely to overtake Sydney in 15th, given the Blues' inferior percentage.

Adelaide, meanwhile, could have its eyes set on leapfrogging Essendon into seventh, but is unlikely to fall outside the top eight thanks to its greater percentage over Port Adelaide. 

As the trade stands

Carlton
Picks No.11 and No.19 (Liam Stocker) = 2277 DVI Points

Adelaide
Pick No.3 = 2234 DVI Points

AFL draft value index

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