Port Adelaide star Zak Butters was told he couldn't leave the club after asking about the possibility of a trade home to Victoria before the end of the season.
The 25-year-old spoke to Power officials about a possible departure from Alberton a month before their 2025 campaign ended, reports Mitch Cleary.
Butters hails from Darley - a small western Victorian town around an hour away from Melbourne's suburbs - and is keen to spend more time at his home while continuing his football career.
However, the response Butters received - in no uncertain terms - was he would need to stay at Port Adelaide for the duration of his contract, which expires at the end of 2026.
MORE: AFL Best and Fairest winners 2025: Every club champion and top 10 leaderboard
Butters would then become a restricted free agent - if doesn't decide to sign a new contract with the Power.
Western Bulldogs - the club Butters supported as a junior - is shaping as the front-runner to snare the Port Adelaide vice-captain if he decides to leave.
Although, if Butters became available on the market, it's likely all 10 Victorian clubs would explore a move for the midfield superstar.
Butters has won the Power's the last three best-and-fairest awards, was All-Australian in 2023 and 2024 and finished fourth and third in the Brownlow across those aforementioned seasons.
Port Adelaide will head into the 2026 season with new coach Josh Carr after a controversial handover from long-term boss Ken Hinkley.