AFL Trading Week Preview: Eagles, Swans, Crows
West Coast Eagles
Status: Bargain Hunter
Assets: Draft picks (16, 34, 50), Ashley Sampi, Michael Gardiner, Andrew McDougall, Brent Staker.
Needs: Goalkickers, extra ruckman.
The Eagles might try to keep everything together after winning the Grand Final. A number of players want to return to WA to play and the Eagles will keep an eye on this. The Eagles will have a wait-and-see approach for trading, and if someone like Ashley McGrath is available cheap then they will make a move.
Sampi has said he will train harder and his goal is to play in the finals for the Eagles next season, but the Eagles may not want him back. Of the players who just missed out on the Grand Final team this season, Brent Staker is a possibility for being traded. If the Eagles want to get higher in the draft then combining Staker and their first rounder should be enough to move into the top 10 picks.
They seem to have distanced themselves from Chris Tarrant, announcing that they were not interested, but he might be the exact player they need.
Sydney Swans
Status: Buyer
Assets: Draft picks (15, 33, 49), Luke Vogels, Paul Bevan, Simon Dempster.
Needs: Tall defender, tall forward.
The Swans have acquired a lot of their team through trading. Hall, Jolly, Davis, Richards and C Bolton are some players who the Swans grabbed from other teams. Expect this to continue, with Peter Everitt at the top of their list.
They unexpectedly got Ted Richards last season and that was a good move, this time they could go back to Essendon for another defender and Dean Solomon, Kepler Bradley or Aaron Henneman could be available. Out of that group, Solomon and Henneman would be more likely and come at a cheaper price, but a taller player like Bradley is what Sydney need to find as there are some forwards who are just too big for Barry to play on.
At the end of trade week expect a couple of stars to have moved to Sydney and for them to have their first draft choice somewhere in the 50s.
Adelaide Crows
Status: Bargain Hunter
Assets: Draft picks (14, 32, 48), Brent Reilly, Kris Massie, John Meesen, Luke Jericho, Ian Perrie, Nathan Van Berlo.
Needs: Full forward, veteran ruckman.
Ricciuto and Hentschel led Adelaide in goals for 2006, Hentschel is gone for 2007 and Ricciuto has played over 300 games. So someone who can kicks goals is the Crows' top priority. Brisbane's Bradshaw might be a good option but the Crows don't seem to have any interest in him.
The Crows could look to trade some of their Victorian or West Australain players back to their home state. They have also talked about putting a package together to grab the top overall draft pick, this would be difficult but not impossible. They would need to include their draft pick as well as acquire another top 10 pick to give to Carlton, and that may still not be enough.
The Crows seem happy to keep what they have and to not look for a quick fix, especially in their ruck division, but if a good offer comes along they will take it.
Check back over the next 5 days for more team previews. Then from October 9 until October 13 all the news and rumours for trade week will be posted. A detailed analysis will follow trade week, to see who improved their team and which ones missed their big chance. Grand Finals are won in September, but the winning teams are put together in October and November.
Status: Bargain Hunter
Assets: Draft picks (16, 34, 50), Ashley Sampi, Michael Gardiner, Andrew McDougall, Brent Staker.
Needs: Goalkickers, extra ruckman.
The Eagles might try to keep everything together after winning the Grand Final. A number of players want to return to WA to play and the Eagles will keep an eye on this. The Eagles will have a wait-and-see approach for trading, and if someone like Ashley McGrath is available cheap then they will make a move.
Sampi has said he will train harder and his goal is to play in the finals for the Eagles next season, but the Eagles may not want him back. Of the players who just missed out on the Grand Final team this season, Brent Staker is a possibility for being traded. If the Eagles want to get higher in the draft then combining Staker and their first rounder should be enough to move into the top 10 picks.
Sydney Swans
Status: Buyer
Assets: Draft picks (15, 33, 49), Luke Vogels, Paul Bevan, Simon Dempster.
Needs: Tall defender, tall forward.
The Swans have acquired a lot of their team through trading. Hall, Jolly, Davis, Richards and C Bolton are some players who the Swans grabbed from other teams. Expect this to continue, with Peter Everitt at the top of their list.
They unexpectedly got Ted Richards last season and that was a good move, this time they could go back to Essendon for another defender and Dean Solomon, Kepler Bradley or Aaron Henneman could be available. Out of that group, Solomon and Henneman would be more likely and come at a cheaper price, but a taller player like Bradley is what Sydney need to find as there are some forwards who are just too big for Barry to play on.
Adelaide Crows
Status: Bargain Hunter
Assets: Draft picks (14, 32, 48), Brent Reilly, Kris Massie, John Meesen, Luke Jericho, Ian Perrie, Nathan Van Berlo.
Needs: Full forward, veteran ruckman.
Ricciuto and Hentschel led Adelaide in goals for 2006, Hentschel is gone for 2007 and Ricciuto has played over 300 games. So someone who can kicks goals is the Crows' top priority. Brisbane's Bradshaw might be a good option but the Crows don't seem to have any interest in him.
The Crows could look to trade some of their Victorian or West Australain players back to their home state. They have also talked about putting a package together to grab the top overall draft pick, this would be difficult but not impossible. They would need to include their draft pick as well as acquire another top 10 pick to give to Carlton, and that may still not be enough.
The Crows seem happy to keep what they have and to not look for a quick fix, especially in their ruck division, but if a good offer comes along they will take it.
Check back over the next 5 days for more team previews. Then from October 9 until October 13 all the news and rumours for trade week will be posted. A detailed analysis will follow trade week, to see who improved their team and which ones missed their big chance. Grand Finals are won in September, but the winning teams are put together in October and November.
