THE WESTERN Bulldogs will kickstart negotiations around a contract extension for premiership player Caleb Daniel in the coming weeks, as the diminutive defender prepares to enter the free agency market next year.
Daniel was a member of the side's 2016 premiership team and won the Charles Sutton Medal as the club's best and fairest, as well as being named an All-Australian for the first time, throughout a career-best 2020 season.
After arriving at the club as one of the steals of the 2014 NAB AFL Draft, Daniel is due to hit free agency in 2022 having established himself as one of the Dogs' best players across his 134-game career.
The Bulldogs moved to take their last star free agent, captain Marcus Bontempelli, off the market as soon as possible earlier this season and signed the gun midfielder to a four-year extension in May.
A similar situation could eventuate for Daniel, with talks over a fresh deal set to commence in the coming weeks after a campaign in which the classy half-back helped the side return to the Grand Final.
"They're not underway yet, but we're going to catch up in the next couple of weeks actually," Daniel's manager, Marty Pask, told AFL.com.au's NAB AFL Draft Night Countdown last week.
"The footy club has reached out and we're going to have initial chats and have a discussion around where everything sits. There's no timeframe or timeline and, from our end, we're always happy to sit down and listen.
"He's been a great player for the Bulldogs. He's got himself a fantastic playing CV at that footy club and we're always keen to have a chat to them."
