Get all the latest news in the trade, free agency and draft landscape in Inside Trading, AFL.com.au's dedicated column for player movement. Find out the latest on contracts, deals, trades, draftees, rules, agents and who is going where from the AFL.com.au team.
VIC CLUBS TARGET EAGLE
VICTORIAN clubs are circling West Coast midfielder Elijah Hewett as the young Eagle weighs his future.
Hewett is out of contract at the Eagles, who have put forward a new deal to take him through to free agency.
But the 21-year-old hasn't been in a rush to sign as a number of clubs in Victoria closely track the former first-round pick with interest.
Geelong, Essendon, Carlton and St Kilda were among the clubs who were interested in Hewett in his draft year when the Eagles used pick No.14 on him in 2022.
Hewett has played four games this season for a total of 38 across his injury-hit start to his AFL career, with the West Australian spending a majority of his time as a half-forward since coming into the Eagles' side.
Rivals are eyeing him as a midfield option, although he has averaged six centre bounce attendances in his four games so far this year as the Eagles work through their midfield mix. – Callum Twomey
NORTH TO START WARDLAW TALKS
GEORGE Wardlaw will begin contract discussions with North Melbourne imminently after an interrupted start to 2026.
The 21-year-old is the Kangaroos' most pressing contract priority this year after first re-signing Wardlaw for two more years straight after his debut back in 2023.
North Melbourne will consider offering Wardlaw a contract through to free agency at the end of 2030, but a two-year extension is understood to be the most likely outcome, given his interruptions to date.
Wardlaw has played 44 games since being selected at pick No.4 in the 2022 AFL Draft - the spot after Harry Sheezel - but has battled hamstring and concussion issues early in his career, around brilliant match-winning performances for North Melbourne.
Rival clubs have been monitoring the situation closely, but don't expect Wardlaw to be available this October at this stage.
Zane Duursma, who the Kangaroos selected at pick No.4 12 months after Wardlaw, is also out of contract and yet to hold meaningful discussions with the Kangaroos.
But after playing only 10 games last year, Duursma has played the first eight of 2026 and gone to another level, kicking 12 goals this season, including three sets of three. – Josh Gabelich
TRIGGER FOR BOMBER AS DONS HOLD OFF DEALS
ESSENDON forward Jade Gresham has a games trigger to land a deal with the Bombers for next year as the club leaves a lot of its contract decisions until the second half of the season.
Gresham signed a three-year deal with the Bombers at the end of 2023 when he crossed from St Kilda as a free agent which included a games-based trigger for a fourth year in 2027.
He was left out of the Bombers' side at the start of the year, returned for four games, was dropped for Anzac Day and then was recalled to play against Brisbane last week, seeing him reach five games so far this season.
The 28-year-old is one of 16 Bombers who are out of contract this year, with the majority to be decisions held for later in the season.
That group includes former top-10 picks Archie Perkins, Nik Cox and Elijah Tsatas, with Tsatas having been on the radar of clubs last year and rivals expecting Perkins to look for a fresh start if he can't break back into the Bombers' line-up consistently.
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Matt Guelfi is a free agent who doesn't have a deal beyond this season and the same for Jaxon Prior, while youngsters Zak Johnson, Lewis Hayes, Kayle Gerryn, Archer Day-Wicks, Jayden Nguyen, Rhys Unwin and Saad El-Hawli are also without deals past this season.
Mature-agers Will Setterfield, Tom Edwards and Liam McMahon are also unsigned past this season, with the Bombers expected to wait on a majority of their contracts until later this season. – Callum Twomey
PIE TO HIT TRIGGER
JACK Crisp will trigger an extension for another season at Collingwood in 2027 when he faces Geelong at the MCG on Saturday night.
The 32-year-old has played 270 consecutive games and now holds the record by roughly a full season after eclipsing Jim Stynes' record last year.
While focus has been on Scott Pendlebury's imminent games record, Crisp has continued to motor along in 2026 and is now set for a one-year extension.
The two-time Copeland Trophy winner needs 18 more games to reach 300 games and could have plenty of football left in him.
Crisp is the No.2 rated wingman in 2026, according to Champion Data's Players Rating System, and has proven himself to not only be incredibly durable over his career, but also versatile.
Collingwood started reshaping the age profile of its list last off-season and have three other veterans currently out of contract in Jeremy Howe, Steele Sidebottom and Pendlebury. Most are expected to be in their final seasons, but Crisp will be out there again in 2027. – Josh Gabelich
MID-YEAR REQUESTS KNOCKED BACK
CARLTON and Sydney will not be able to open mid-season rookie spots for injured pair Rob Monahan and Liam Hetherton, despite both players being set to miss the rest of the year.
Monahan will miss the remainder of 2026 with a shoulder injury, while Hetherton is battling a back concern, but both players are Category B rookies making them ineligible to be replaced under the League's mid-season draft rules.
Only senior-listed players and Category A rookies can be replaced mid-year, meaning neither Carlton nor Sydney currently have an open spot among the 15-20 picks that are expected to be used.
Adelaide, Greater Western Sydney, Hawthorn, Port Adelaide and St Kilda all have free list spots left over from pre-season, while the Power have the option of opening a second position due to Ollie Lord's injury.
Collingwood (Reef McInnes), Melbourne (Jai Culley), Richmond (Josh Gibcus) and the Western Bulldogs (Sam Darcy) can also open list spots, while West Coast can open two through injuries to Deven Robertson and Jacob Newton.
As revealed by AFL.com.au last month, the Demons are also expected to be able to open a secondary position with veteran ruck Tom Campbell considering retirement in the coming weeks.
Essendon is among a number of other sides that will consider opening a spot for this month's mid-season draft, with Brayden Fiorini set for a long-term stint on the sidelines due to a back issue. – Riley Beveridge
TIGERS YOUNGSTER EXTENDS DEAL
RICHMOND has rolled over Jasper Alger's contract into a third season, tying the youngster down until the end of next year in line with its other 2024 draftees.
Alger was the last of the Tigers' eight draftees chosen from their massive 2024 crop and has played five games across his first couple of years at Punt Road, but has battled a knee injury across recent weeks.
Sam Lalor, Josh Smillie, Taj Hotton and Jonty Faull all earned deals through until 2027 courtesy of being top 20 picks, with none of the four yet to extend beyond their initial contracts.
Luke Trainor, Harry Armstrong and Tom Sims were drafted outside the top 20 but had all already added another season to their maiden two-year deals, with Alger now joining them as the last of the group to extend.
Alger was the No.58 pick among a talented 2024 draft class, having been recruited out of the Oakleigh Chargers. – Riley Beveridge
TASSIE MAKE 2027 DRAFT PUSH
TASMANIA is making a renewed push to host the 2027 national draft, potentially marking the first time the event will be held outside of Victoria in close to a decade.
The Devils are set to dominate the early parts of their first ever draft having been handed seven of the first 13 picks as part of the AFL's expansion list rules and want the event in Tasmania to mark their entry into the competition.
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The draft will be held at the AFL-owned Marvel Stadium for a ninth straight year this November, having previously been taken to multiple states across the country.
Gold Coast hosted the draft when the Suns entered the competition in 2010, while Sydney held the event when the Giants arrived in 2011, before it was taken across the country in the following years.
Gold Coast had it again in 2012, 2013 and 2014, Adelaide hosted in 2015, while Sydney held it in 2016 and 2017 before it returned to Melbourne in 2018 where it has remained ever since.
Tasmania's push to host the 2027 draft will coincide with the Devils holding picks No.1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11 and 13 ahead of their first year, though four of those selections (picks No.5, 7, 11 and 13) must be traded for established players. – Riley Beveridge
DEAN'S KEEN EYE
ONE of Carlton's best young recruits is already busy trying to find Carlton some more best new recruits for the club.
Blues father-son Harry Dean has wasted no time on the field showing he belongs at the top level after being the No.3 pick at last year's draft.
He has also wasted no time on looking towards the future, with Dean already getting involved in the Blues' recruiting team with an interest in scouting in the future.
Last week the 18-year-old spent his Saturday morning watching Vic Country and the Young Guns game with Carlton's recruiting team before heading to Marvel Stadium later in the day to take on St Kilda.
Dean, the son of dual Carlton premiership player Peter, has settled comfortably in defence for the Blues this season and looks every bit a long-term key defender the club can build around. – Callum Twomey
EX-POWER FORWARD ON MID-SEASON RADAR
FORMER Port Adelaide-listed forward Tom Scully is back on the radar of AFL clubs after starring in the SANFL across the past 18 months.
The 21-year-old didn't play a game for the Power across two years on the list at Alberton, but is now being considered for a lifeline ahead of the Mid-Season Rookie Draft.
Collingwood and the Western Bulldogs are among two clubs with interest in Scully, while others have been monitoring his progress at West Adelaide.
Scully kicked 30 goals last year and finished runner-up in the best and fairest after being delisted at the end of 2024.
But this year, the 203cm key forward has captured the attention of recruiters after kicking 10.7 across the first five rounds of 2026.
Collingwood has a list spot available after losing Reef McInnes for the rest of the season, while Sam Darcy also ruptured his ACL, creating an opening at the Whitten Oval. – Josh Gabelich