Geelong star Tim Kelly may well have decided he wants to play for West Coast from next season, but the midfielder’s stellar 2019 has made a trade even tougher to negotiate.
The Herald Sun reported on Tuesday that Kelly is set to reject a specially-tailored multi-year contract from the Cats in favour of a lucrative long-term deal dangled by the Eagles to lure the 25-year-old back to his home state.
That deal is reported to be over six years and worth around $5 million, making Kelly’s acquisition quite a feat given the salary cap squeeze brought on by new deals for stars like Andrew Gaff, Jeremy McGovern, Luke Shuey, Jack Darling, Elliot Yeo and Nic Naitanui.
Cross-town rivals Fremantle are believed to have more room to move under the cap, but are not thought to be the ball winner’s preferred destination, which he will reveal whenever the Cats’ finals run ends.
Kelly, whose wish to be traded to West Coast at the end of last season was denied, is among the favourites for this year’s Brownlow Medal following a stellar campaign that saw him earn All Australian honours.
The Cats picked him out of the WAFL as a 23-year-old in the second round (No.24) of the 2017 draft and he took the competition by storm, going on to finish equal-second in the club’s best-and-fairest count.
Kelly’s desire to move his young family back to Perth, with the support network of family and friends available there, was the driving force behind his trade request last year and remains the case.
The Eagles baulked at Geelong’s asking price in 2018, understood to be two first-round draft picks, and it will only have become steeper on the back of Kelly’s heroics this season.
And that price could go even higher if he polls well in the Brownlow and stars during the Cats’ finals campaign.
A key difference this time is that Kelly’s two-year draftee contract is due to expire in October.
The indicative draft order released by the AFL after round 23 has West Coast holding picks 14, 22, 32 and 59, with future picks also in play.
Those 2019 selections are based on the club’s fifth-placed finish at the end of the season and will edge down the order the further Adam Simpson’s side advances into the finals.
All of that leaves the Eagles with some work to do if they are to land the prized midfielder at the coming trade period.
Geelong were contacted for comments on Kelly’s situation but declined.