THERE is yet another extremely messy twist in the Adam Treloar saga.

The Western Bulldogs, Treloar's new AFL club, and Collingwood, his old one, are at loggerheads over the breakdown of the $4.5 million owed to the 27-year-old in his new five-year deal from 2021-25. 

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The mayhem on trade deadline night, Thursday, November 12 – where the Treloar deal was confirmed via an email from the Bulldogs to AFL officials just seconds before the 7.30pm cut-off – has continued since. 

Formal paperwork for all AFL trades is normally required within a week of the close of Trade Period, but special exemption from the AFL for an extension has been granted. 

It is believed the AFL has provided a new deadline for resolution of this Friday. 

The massive stand-off between the clubs is not Treloar's problem – he will receive the full amount owed to him – but it is looming as a significant total player payments issue for the Bulldogs. 

Clubs interested in Treloar, one of four players off-loaded by Collingwood in the Trade Period as part of a drastic salary dump, were of the belief the Pies were prepared to cover about $300,000 a year of the $900,000 a year total for Treloar. 

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The Bulldogs negotiated internally to those figures but, since lodging the intent of trade with the AFL, have not been able to get even near finalising the contract.

The Magpies are playing hard-ball on the amount to which they will commit, and are taking the view that this is not their problem. 

It is believed the clubs are as far apart as $200,000 a year on at least one season of the five-season deal. 

The matter has been complicated by the season-long uncertainty about list sizes and salary caps for 2021 and beyond, with recent clarity on those issues failing to bring the Dogs and Pies any closer to resolution. 

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Treloar's exit from Collingwood after five seasons was one of the messiest departures ever seen in the AFL.

Collingwood's inability to properly communicate with the players it wanted out exacerbated the problem, as did the club's refusal to speak publicly about its need to off-load salary commitments, which also saw 2018 NAB Rising Star Jaidyn Stephenson badly hurt and transferred to North Melbourne.

Tom Phillips, who like Treloar and Stephenson was contracted to the Pies, was also moved out to Hawthorn, and Atu Bosenavulagi followed Stephenson to the Kangaroos. 

Twitter: @barrettdamian