Superstar getting ‘dagger-eyes’; Merrett ‘trade collateral’ — Verdict on AFL’s five most in-demand veterans

In many ways, the 2026 trade landscape is unlike anything the AFL has seen before, with two former club leaders and a current captain among the biggest names at the centre of off-season speculation.

On the latest episode of Midweek Tackle’s digital-only show ‘Tackle The Headline’, Lauren Wood, Jon Ralph and Corbin Middlemas unpacked the latest on five of the league’s most sought-after veterans and where their futures could lie.

LACHIE NEALE

Jon Ralph says: “I reported (Tuesday) that the first two years of a three-year contract would be about a million dollars at Collingwood. Corbin, does he deserve that? And what’s the price if Fremantle wanted to not match that deal, but get somewhere closer given their offer was about two years at $600,000? And at one stage they thought (Lachie) was coming back home.”

Corbin Middlemas says: “I feel like for Lachie in that sense, Fremantle haven’t got what would fulfil him at this particular stage of his career. He’s played footy in Perth previously, he’s played footy in Brisbane, he’s had team success. You feel like the only thing that he hasn’t done, is step out on a field every single weekend in front of 80,000 people — and that’s what the Magpies can provide.

“Also, if they’ve got a fair bit of cash there for him as well, that also fulfils him obviously and sets him up going forward for years to come. I feel like Collingwood’s in a great position to secure him. You talk about the actual money that’s attached to it and whether that’s worth the squeeze for the Magpies — what price do you put on satisfying Nick Daicos and keeping him comfortable that: ‘Hey, we can contend, we’re good now. There’s some support in the midfield?’

“I can make sense of it if I’m Justin Leppitsch as to why they’d possibly be going down that path.”

Lauren Wood says: “It would excite Nick Daicos, but it would probably rankle a few.”

Jon Ralph says: Well, some of those players would be cranky. The likes of Steele Sidebottom, Scott Pendlebury, potentially, and even Jeremy Howe, who stayed for a lot less. But, I just think that’s what the list management game is. Surely they can understand that this club needs to keep Nick Daicos happy.

“People say: ‘Why is he going to Collingwood?’ Well, probably because of the money. I also think at Brisbane, around every corner there’s a reminder. Every function that he goes to, he’s getting the dagger-eyes from the players or — more to the point — their partners, given that he let down his partner so badly. So, I just think that that’s the constant reminder there as well. If you’re a Collingwood player, yes, you’d be upset about the money he’s on, but it happens all the time.

“You know, the star free agents come in, you know, Harry Perryman got $900,000, Dan Houston got $900,000. It’s just the way it has to be if you would like to keep your club in the window.”

TOBY GREENE

Jon Ralph says: “It’s probably not a money decision … let’s face it, the only club is likely to be Geelong if he doesn’t stay at GWS.”

Lauren Wood says: “It’s ticked a lot of boxes so far, hasn’t it? I mean, he’s the captain of the club, he’s had some really big performances this year. We’ve had the obligatory real estate story, talk of a property at Aireys Inlet (which was denied) … It’s just about ticked every box for a departure year, hasn’t it? But Geelong, they clearly always pay unders because they can offer this lifestyle of potentially Aireys Inlet.

Jon Ralph says: “I think it’s three years at $700,000. He’s earned a million dollars for probably the last seven or eight years. He can come back, lives on the coast, gets a couple of tractors … and as we were told there as well by Tom Hawkins, Jezza’s been in his ear — you think about how powerful that would be.

“Come and win a flag, you play a poor game — and there will be some poor games in the next three years. It doesn’t matter because someone else goes and kicks four (like) Tyson Stengle or Gryan Myers. I think the fact that he’s in a good team is more important than the money, because as GWS would say, he’s had some quiet games this year — and they get highlighted.

“They don’t get highlighted at Geelong. Patty Dangerfield has four possessions, we say: ‘Ah, next week’. It’s a family decision, but I think going to Geelong would be a smart move given that there will be some quiet games in the last couple of years of his career.”

ZACH MERRETT

Lauren Wood says: “All signs are pointing to him wanting to get to Hawthorn again, but it’s not going to be the deal it was last year.”

Jon Ralph says: “He’s played as good football as he had last year, except he’s played at half-back and in defence at times. I just think this could be a recipe for disaster for Essendon again, if it is the same formula the doom loop, where he says: ‘I only want to go to Hawthorn’, and Hawthorn says: ‘That’s great, but hang on, all of a sudden Bailey Humphrey wants to come in, and Ben King — we’re interested in him. And all we have is a current first-round pick and those three second rounders which won’t do much.’

“Tim Watson said it well: ‘Find us multiple clubs where you would like to go. It might be Gold Coast who are interested, it might be Melbourne, it might be another club up in the window — and then we’ll go and get a deal done. Because you just don’t want to be Essendon, a minute to midnight thinking to themselves: ‘How do we deal with Hawthorn again?’

“Different manager, same list boss at Hawthorn. I think that’s got real challenges, so I think that’d be really smart to try and find multiple avenues. Again, he’s probably a $1.2 million player, but it’s the trade collateral that’s so important from Essendon.”

JORDAN RIDLEY

Corbin Middlemas says: “He’s a fascinating one for me, and particularly the fact that he’s coming back and playing at this particular stage. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think they should hold him out or anything like that. But, the guy that’s had so many soft tissue injuries across the course of his career, it makes me wonder: ‘What is he worth right now?’

“Who knows what happens in the back end of the season? If he can string together 10 consecutive weeks of footy … does that help his value go up? Or … if for whatever reason he doesn’t string those games together, could his trade value actually dip on the back end of the season? I’m fascinated how Essendon feel about this. If he is going to go, whether he’s better off playing or not playing at this particular stage and how his value will change in the next 10 weeks. I feel like there’s a bit to be played out here in what he’s going to be worth at season’s end, based off what happens in the next 10 weeks.”

Jon Ralph says: “If I’m James Hird or Dean Solomon or John Longmire — whoever that Essendon coach is — you get them all in a room and say: ‘Who wants to go? Put your hand up, I’ll trade the rest of you’. You do not want to be in this situation at the end of 2027, where Ridley goes: ‘Oh, actually I would like to go this time’ or Darcy Parish says: ‘I want to go to Geelong’, or Kyle Langford says: ‘I’ve had so many quad injuries.’

“Make sure all of those blokes put their hand up. You’ll be as young as you’ll ever be next year, and then you build from there. I think Ridley’s a very handy player, but again, if you’re Gold Coast, you’d be a little bit of buyer-beware. You bring him in, you lose a Bailey Humphrey, and all of a sudden he has more quad and hamstring and calf complaints … For every Lincoln McCarthy who’s gone to the northern climates and flourished, there is a Tom Doedee who has really battled. Some players are just injury prone.”

NATHAN BROAD

Lauren Wood says: “He obviously wants to get home to WA. Does that lessen your price when everyone knows that you want to go there?”

Jon Ralph says: “He’s cheap as chips, don’t worry about that. He would have been very, very handy in that West Coast side when they were getting eviscerated by Jack Darling and of course, Nick Larkey as well. His manager Colin Young is earning his money trying to get him a deal. I think their view is: ‘We already brought in all of those Richmond players’ … is that one too many? But, I just think you get him in as effectively a free coach. $100,000 and it’s not in your football department cap. You might have a coaching component to that next year, but he’s a great club man. He’ll play games, he won’t whinge if he’s playing WAFL. What’s to lose for Nathan Broad and West Coast?

Lauren Wood says: “It’s a total win-win.”