St Kilda ruckman Rowan Marshall is a ‘very good chance’ to be traded to Geelong, according to a trusted journalist.
With the Saints looking to bring in Carlton’s Tom De Koning and Jack Silvagni, GWS Giants’ Leek Aleer and West Coast’s Liam Ryan, reportedly on big money, there are reports that some Saints players may ‘tip out’ due to the influx of players on big money.
Trusted journalist Mitch Cleary said he thinks Saints ruckman Rowan Marshall could end up at Geelong, but explained how the Saints would drive a hard bargain for him.
"I think Rowan Marshall is a very good chance to end up at Geelong,” Cleary said on 3AW’s World Wide of Sports.
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“The Saints will drive a hard bargain, and the interesting part of this is that a lot of Rowan Marshall's contract will have already been paid because the Saints haven't been paying a lot of players in recent years, so his contract would've been front-ended.
“So a large percentage of that is already off the books, which means that they're not going to be paying Marshall a heap in the next couple of years.”
Cleary said the Saints could demand a higher pick for Marshall due to the money they have already paid in the contract.
“As a result, the Saints will want more in a trade because they'll think, 'well, we've already paid his money, rather than him going to Geelong for a pick in the late 20s, we want something strong in return,” Cleary said
“That's going to be a real haggling one this off-season, but I'm with you, I think something does have to tip out now. Even though they've [Saints] a heap of salary cap room, it is a stretch to fit this all in if something else doesn't budge.”
The AFL Trade period will start on Monday, October 6, kicking off at 9 am (AEDT). More details about the trade period can be found here.