Trade talk, rumours & innuendo 2026

[Francois Jackson]

i said this a while back. Port dont match and its pick 5 (compo) plus another compo.

cats virtually get him for free.

wild

[ajGreen]

i said this a while back. Port dont match and its pick 5 (compo) plus another compo.

cats virtually get him for free.

wild

They can't get another compo pick.

Pick 5 doesn't exist if it's a trade.

institutionalized manipulation / cheating. Wild indeed

[Francois Jackson]

i said this a while back. Port dont match and its pick 5 (compo) plus another compo.

cats virtually get him for free.

wild

They can't get another compo pick.

Pick 5 doesn't exist if it's a trade.

institutionalized manipulation / cheating. Wild indeed

of course it doesn't exist but what would port prefer. Pick 5 or pick 13-20 via trade? port will get a compo in any case.

if port want more i'm sure someone will do a deal with the cats.

[ajGreen]

i said this a while back. Port dont match and its pick 5 (compo) plus another compo.

cats virtually get him for free.

wild

They can't get another compo pick.

Pick 5 doesn't exist if it's a trade.

institutionalized manipulation / cheating. Wild indeed

Yeah port can have pick 5 compo that's fine. As per the rules.

It's the making up extra magic compo picks that's insane

of course it doesn't exist but what would port prefer. Pick 5 or pick 13-20 via trade? port will get a compo in any case.

if port want more i'm sure someone will do a deal with the cats.

[Tiger Khosh]

Not sure what the tampering is. If butters wants to go to Geelong and port think the compo pick is better than what they can get from them in a trade then that’s what they’ll take.

So bombers bid on Cochrane at 1 which is worth 3000 points minus 10% academy discount brings it down to 2700. Port match using their pick 4 from finishing 14th + pick 5 from butters f/a compo which are worth 3757 points combined. That leaves them with 1057 points in surplus which is the equivalent of pick 14.

So overall Port will get Cochrane and Pick 14 for Butters.

[ajGreen]

 " pick no.5, the free agency compensation pick, will become part of the overall transaction and package"

Without clear cheating it cannot be part of the package.

Cal Twomey is effectively reporting draft tampering.

[Andyy]

@TK,

They will get Cochrane and P14 in exchange for Butters and P4.

So it would look more like:
Pick 4 > Cochrane (paying unders)
Butters > Pick 5 (receiving major unders)

I think it's an ordinary deal for Port and Cats should be forced to sweeten the deal somehow, but not sure how.

[Tiger Khosh]

@TK,

They will get Cochrane and P14 in exchange for Butters and P4.

So it would look more like:
Pick 4 > Cochrane (paying unders)
Butters > Pick 5 (receiving major unders)

I think it's an ordinary deal for Port and Cats should be forced to sweeten the deal somehow, but not sure how.

Ah yes forgot to include pick 4 in the outgoing. Thanks for that.

[one-eyed]

The Age’s Peter Ryan on Wednesday morning reported “the best result” for the Power could be “to take the compensation before working from there to maximise the return for their club”.

“If they did go down the compensation path, the gap in their collateral would be picks in the 2027 national draft, which they will need for emerging father-son and NGA prospects Louis Salopek and Zemes Pilot,” Ryan wrote for The Age.

“That need could be met via another deal with either the Cats or the Bulldogs, which would need to be AFL-approved but could include, according to sources at other clubs, trading in the Cats’ or Bulldogs’ first-round pick in 2027 for two second-round picks in 2028, or something similar.”

https://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/department-of-trade/afl-trade-news-rumours-whispers-2026-zak-butters-free-agency-latest-huge-geelong-offer-revealed-as-cats-bulldogs-eye-pick-5-trade-twist/news-story/14c8e772bbb00b3aa54f45f43b5b037a

[Tiger Khosh]

" pick no.5, the free agency compensation pick, will become part of the overall transaction and package"

Without clear cheating it cannot be part of the package.

Cal Twomey is effectively reporting draft tampering.

Just read more into it as that statement on its own isn’t clear.

So they’re saying port won’t match so they get pick 5 and then the cats/dogs will do another “seperate” trade which is highly favourable to Port to make up the difference in valuation of butters value.

I mean it probably doesn’t break any rules straight up but it sure is a hell of a loop hole that is being exploited.

[ajGreen]

" pick no.5, the free agency compensation pick, will become part of the overall transaction and package"

Without clear cheating it cannot be part of the package.

Cal Twomey is effectively reporting draft tampering.

Just read more into it as that statement on its own isn’t clear.

So they’re saying port won’t match so they get pick 5 and then the cats/dogs will do another “seperate” trade which is highly favourable to Port to make up the difference in valuation of butters value.

I mean it probably doesn’t break any rules straight up but it sure is a hell of a loop hole that is being exploited.

Yes they can do a secondary trade of course but how's that going to work.

2nd and a future 1st for ports 4th rounder?

[Andyy]

Except the trade period is separate to the draft period, yeah?

So Port should do a favourable trade, then match Geelong's offer

[Tiger Khosh]

Nah free agency period opens before trade period and closes before it too.

So it would be the other way round where cats/dogs tell them they’ll give them extra during trade period and then once the FA papers for butters get lodged they act like it never happened to port lol

[Tiger Khosh]

" pick no.5, the free agency compensation pick, will become part of the overall transaction and package"

Without clear cheating it cannot be part of the package.

Cal Twomey is effectively reporting draft tampering.

Just read more into it as that statement on its own isn’t clear.

So they’re saying port won’t match so they get pick 5 and then the cats/dogs will do another “seperate” trade which is highly favourable to Port to make up the difference in valuation of butters value.

I mean it probably doesn’t break any rules straight up but it sure is a hell of a loop hole that is being exploited.

Yes they can do a secondary trade of course but how's that going to work.

2nd and a future 1st for ports 4th rounder?

Yup that’s how I’m interpreting it atleast.

FA gets done and port get pick 5 while butters signs for either dogs or cats.

Then when trade week starts cats give them players for not much back or they do a ridic pick swap like you’ve written.

I mean id be much more down for that if that’s how Richmond were getting it done lol they can have our compo pick and 2nds ontop of the pick 5 they get.

[OneEyedRichmond]

It’s going to be epic when Butters picks the tigers