New Fremantle recruit Blake Acres says the chance to lock down a spot on the wing convinced him to be part of the Brad Hill trade.
Acres still had a year to go on his St Kilda contract, but was traded to the Dockers on Wednesday as part of the deal that sent Hill to the Saints.
As part of the trade, Fremantle received picks 10 and 58 in this year’s AFL national draft, as well as a future second-round and fourth-round selection.
The Saints were handed a future third-round selection along with Hill.
Acres averaged 20.3 disposals in 2017 and 21.5 disposals in 2018, but that dropped to 16.2 from 19 games this year.
The 24-year-old filled a variety of roles at St Kilda, but new Fremantle coach Justin Longmuir is keen to see Acres on the wing.
“Longy was pretty keen on the wing role for me and I was pretty happy with that,” Acres said.
“I’m a player that moved around a bit at the Saints and had a variety of roles.
“The opportunity Longy’s presented is more of a settled role and more just wing and maybe a little bit inside. I’m excited about that opportunity.
“I feel I have a lot more to offer than I have so far and, hopefully, I can put that to work on the field next season.”
The arrival of Acres is important for Fremantle given they lost their two preferred wingmen during the trade period – Hill and Ed Langdon (Melbourne).