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The real skill in this negotiation was not in dealing with the Crows, it was in convincing Lever with absolute clarity and certainty that his long term future will be at the MFC.

So what's Lever worth ? If Adelaide had chosen Lever with pick 1 in the 2014 draft they would have been lauded for getting it right. At 21 and 195cm he's no.1 in the league for intercept possessions with Alex Rance second and he's number 2 in the league for intercept marks just behind McGovern (3.8 to 3.6). Every draft pick is somewhat speculative, even pick 1, so you don't trade a proven young gun with over 50 games for a speculative draft pick. And bear in mind there are first rounders and there are first rounders. Pick 1 is a first rounder and so is pick 18. We didn't give up a single digit pick this year and hopefully next year's first rounder is in the teens. In reality, the Lever trade is defined by two separate issues, i.e. was the price fair and secondly, did we negotiate as well as we could ? The second question doesn't overly interest me a) because we landed the best young talent in recent trade history and b) I'm not privy to all of the facts, so I'll let others have a coronary over that one. As far as the first question goes I have zero doubt we didn't pay "overs" for the reasons mentioned above and below. Conclusion, he's worth at least pick 1 in this draft and I'd argue he's worth more than pick 1, because he's no longer speculative. Would anyone here trade Petracca for pick 1 ? How about pick 1 for picks 10 and 13 ? So if he's worth more than pick 1 I can't quite understand why some are so concerned by pick 10 and a pick next year (hopefully) in the teens, especially when 35 is coming back. PS: I know we supposedly got him for about pick 5 under the points system, but I don't reckon that's a great way of measuring the worth of players and it's mainly used for F/S and academy players.

The club achieved all its goals, I just wish one of those was not kicking Watts out for whatever they could get.

We got market value for Watts and paid market value for a bloke who was almost an All Australian at 21. I don't understand why people can't see this.

Another one for the dummies. Melbourne Demons In: Jake Lever, Harley Balic, pick 31, pick 36, Adelaide’s 2018 third-round pick. Out: Jack Watts, pick 10, pick 66, Melbourne’s 2018 first-round pick, Melbourne’s 2018 fourth-round pick. Melbourne paid a lot to recruit Jake Lever but he will prove to be worth every penny – there’s no other player his age who is anything like him, and the Demons will find themselves a with a unique, elite player in their backline for ten years to come. Harley Balic I like too and he came cheap. No complaints. Unlike most I am guessing, I reckon trading out Jack Watts was a good call. He’s been little other than a headache for near on ten years and there’s a point where it’s just not worth the effort anymore. Melbourne will have a quiet few years at the draft table but have assembled more than enough talent to take them to the pointy end of the ladder over the next decade. The Crowd’s grade: B (52 per cent)My grade: A http://www.theroar.com.au/2017/10/20/roars-2017-afl-trade-period-report-card-every-club-graded-voted/

Even if he ends up another Michie etc - so what? We're just as likely, or more, to get that player with the pick we used in the draft. There is literally only upside in this trade.

This. For everyone (and I think it is just about everyone?) who has been irritated by the 'just more talk, when will we see action' pattern regarding the club's consistency issues, well, here you go, that's what action looks like.

Fantastic week for our club, think they achieved all their objectives and secured the players they needed to improve our list Picks Available - 29, 31, 36 and 47 1/ Lever - huge get, the best kid traded to our club in many, many years. 2/ Balic - good upside for the price we paid I saw this kid a number of times in WA this year. 3/ Picks - essential brought in an extra usable picks into this years draft ie pick 36 Outs 1/ Pick 10 - pretty much a raffle pick in this years draft so I'm not worried about exchanging it to get Lever & another raffle pick pick 36 2/ Watts - sad to see Jack leave and wish him all the best at the PAFC, he will always be a Demon to me. Wish to thank the FD for all their efforts in this tough, stressful and often emotional week. Im very happy and looking forward to embracing our very positive and bright future. Go Dees.

At least they credited us.

There's no doubt that Brendan McCartney is an influence on this decision, he's a key member of the FD. There doesn't seem to be any editing of the script here. “It comes down to Jack’s performance but it is around preparation and commitment, all the extra things that he could be doing that other players are doing at certain stages.” Mahoney said on AFL Trade Radio. “It is a really important stage where Jack is at as an experienced player at the footy club with the amount of games he has played, with such a young list, he has a big influence on our young players. That’s what comes with being an experienced player ... he is very clear on our expectations about him." "But the list management group felt that Jack's consistency of performance while at Melbourne hasn't been at the level expected of a player with his experience," Melbourne football chief Josh Mahoney said. I still cannot understand what your conspiracy theory is.

Trading doesn't occur in a vacuum. You can only deal with the hand you have. Sometimes you give a little more sometimes you get a little more. The critical thing is shoring up the key positions and getting the players that your list needs. You can't do that in one draft. There are 17 other clubs trying to do the same thing and spoil your party. The moaning about 'we got pick 31 and it should have been pick 26' therefore we should have kept Watts or such is meaningless if you believe that Watts is not part of the future of the club. Similarly with Lever. If you believe is a key plank in the team for the next 10 years then you do what you have to in order to get him. People forget that no-one wanted to come to the Dees in the past. That's why the Lewis deal was such a meaningful statement. We now have Lever. Next year we might get another key player. I am very glad that some here aren't in charge of list management. Being a good bloke is not a requirement for being on the list. Our list management team has done an exceptional job if you want to compare it to 2008-2013. It doesn't mean they will get every decision right but our team is definitely stronger with more talent than it has been for a decade. They have made a statement with Watts rightly or wrongly. I happen to think its right. We were never going to improve with Watts after 9 years. We have all complained about the team being soft and capitulating easy games. A mindset change is required and I hope what we are seeing from the list management dept translates to on field. And as usual we won't know probably until 12 months time. Go Dees.

It's easy to under-estimate the influence of player managers and their view of your club's reputation as a trader. When there's competition for a player like Lever, which there was, the fact that the player managers can say with confidence that MFC will get the job done goes a long way when the player is nominating a destination and getting that nomination is 90% of the task. Next year there's some attractive FAs. Players and managers know MFC can get the job done, even if there are matching offers.

FMD! Some of you would complain if you won the lotto! I am fed up with the same people, making the same assertions, on every fricken thread. Don’t you think we have heard you already? It is you humble (well, not so humble) opinion that we were ‘bent over’ or ‘terrible negotiators’ or whatever. How specifically do you determine this? If we look at results: MFC landed the player that they were after, moved on a player they were happy to move on. The rest is assumption based upon posters ‘perceived knowledge of potential future value’ of draft picks’ worth, or else a belief that we could have managed to achieve more (which is possible, but from outside, how can we actually tell?). Unless you are present, and have all information, it is not possible to tell how the trades were discussed. Unless you have inner knowledge of our list management priorities and strategies, it is not possible to determine if the club was successful or not. My personal belief (based upon evidence over the last few years) is that: The club has a clear idea of what they need for the list, and are not afraid to make the calls to see this through (evidence, Trenners, Watts, Lever) The club is innovative in its approach and open to try new things (evidence: one of the first teams to trade up for lower picks / more points that suited both parties) The club will take opportunities that suit its needs (evidence: Lewis) The fact that we did not act on the last day does not mean that we were not active. However, I would rather the club operate strategically and opportunistically in line with their vision, than simply acting to keep a few uninformed fans happy. I look forward to us progressing in 2018 based on the development of assets we already have, as well as Lever adding to the mix. I look forward to a strong culture, a leadership group at the club (not in the team) that drives its strategy and executes to get the results. I am yet to see evidence that I will be disappointed, based upon this trade period. (And with DFA options still available, who knows what else may happen?)

From what I've read Sydney, Collingwood, Geelong and Port were interested in Jack. Jack decided in week one of trade week that he wanted to go to Port but couldn't announce it as lose ends were being tied up. I took this to mean the trade picks and the portion of salary to be paid by Port. So I for one believe you that Jack had other offers. I heard WB's Football Manager, Chris Grant yesterday talk about Stringer and why he was being let go. Unlike mfc he made it clear the issues were best kept in-house as they wanted to treat Jake with dignity and respect. The same cannot be said of mfc's coach, captain and football manager. Their public critique of Jack was constant; a very harsh way to treat a loyal albeit imperfect employee who is being exited. People say everyone knew Jack's deficiencies. Probably true but our club didn't need to keep reminding everyone of them and certainly not after the deal was done, which Mahoney did. Not sure what was going on inside mfc but deliberately devaluing one's asset isn't very smart in my book. Despite all that, our Jack held his head high and did not once comment on what mfc was putting out to the public. He took it on the chin. He was gracious, respectful and showed goodwill to the end. You must be a very proud uncle, Chewy.

That was Jakos 9th game of football. 14 marks 22 kicks 0 handballs 0 tackles 11 goals 8 behinds. He was a superstar.

Probably my favourite part was the Exorcist story (the "kiss" game). Exactly the kind of embellishment you want to hear in the footy half of the story, but in the car ride home, they weren't a freak forward and an elite CHB, they were just two sons in the car with their mother, going through the range of emotions a bittersweet moment like that can bring up. Brought a tear to my eye.

The best two hours I've had with my pants on. Thank you SOOOO much.

Totally disagree Josh Mahoney should be sacked!! Failed to hold his nerve with the Lever trade & gave away two 1st rounders, 10 and 27 would've be adequate but he panicked. Lever ( a very good young player) nominated us, he was uncontracted, deals get done at the end of trade periods. Adelaide held their nerve, we crumbled. Watts pick 31, ok fair enough but paying part of his salary for a contracted player...please!!!! Balic whoopee!!!

A great week for the club. A statement made by Goodwin and the F.D. over Watts. Untapped potential and popularity with fans does not win Premierships. A fair price paid for Lever. A known quantity, unlike a high draft picks. The club has sufficient young players being developed already. What's to lose with Balic. Pick 66.

Agree I thought it was a hugely successful trade period for us. To the whingers, a coupla things: 1 - Jake Lever. You clearly have NFI how good this kid is and how big a coup it is for our club to land him at 21 years of age. Some of the lack of opposition player knowledge is genuinely embarrassing. 2 - The reason next year's draft is predicted to be a 'super' draft is purely because of how many potential quality top 10 picks there'll be vs this year. There will be many more potential number 1 picks next year. This year there are still plenty of players who are hard to separate from picks 15 -35. The club obviously believe there will be some quality remaining at 29, 31 and 36 and that it'd be smarter to take three second-round picks to the draft vs one late first round and later picks. Our chances of landing some good players at those three are very good. Our development program, the coaches and leaders we have mean that any new talent coming through will be given every chance to shine. I think we're in a very strong position. Our 'core' now comprises of: Hogan (51 games) Weideman (10) Salem (46) Petracca (39) Viney (88) Brayshaw (36) Oliver (35) Hunt (41) Lever (56) That's a beautiful spread of talent across all lines and that group coming through together have the potential to really take this club to the top. There are plenty of great support players underneath this group who I haven't named. But I think people forget how young and inexperienced these guys are. Look at what Viney is doing at game 88 and now imagine what Petracca, Lever, Hogan, Oliver etc will be like when they reach that point.. Or 100 games.. We just need to keep adding smartly in and around this group. Looking forward to the draft.

The greatest thing ever seen on AFL.com..... so glad they are reporting on it.

Thanks. I have tried to be open minded about it all. Nah. It was only me. Jack doesn't know about me being on here and I'm sure he'll kill me if he finds out. And I have only recently told Jack's mum and dad. We all have the choice in what we want to believe. But I don't think that I'd be making any over-the-top statement by suggesting that not all information is made available to the public. I'm not here to brow beat people into believing me. Just to share what I know to be the facts. And I know what the level of market interest was in Jack. Believe me or not, that's fine. The real problem the FD had is in what they said to Jack and to PC about Jack's chances of remaining a Dee. From the outset, PC knew that the club couldn't/wouldn't take Jack back and so MFC had no wriggle room when it came to negotiating for higher picks. And, my opinion is, that I'd be quite certain that PA knew that too. So why would they offer anything better when they know they can get 'away' with pick 31 and MFC contributing to Jacks package. But again I'm not here to beat you into believing my stories. I wish the Dees every success but really hope the FD get their heads around some better, more respectful, player management practices.

Actual quote from Jako - "you don't kick goals with handballs"

I'm just curious as I haven't seen it listed anywhere but is this where we stand now... Outs. Ins. Garland. Lever Trengove. Balic Watts. Joel Smith* (*exrookie use pick 84 to promote) Spencer. Pick 29 Lumunba. Pick 31 Kennedy. Pick 36 Hulett. Pick 47 White (rookie) Pick 10 (rookie) Joel Smith-promo. Pick 29 (rookie) Sound right?

I was just expressing a view that your attack of the footy dept and their approach to trade week has been noted. Just wondering if you have a new angle to your attack to add or whether you've got it out of your system now. I personally find it tiresome but acknowledge your right to express yourself - again and again and again.

What about a cheese platter?

I so desperately want this player - who I've never seen and know practically nothing about - that even this existence of this thread is making me anxious, as if the NMFC recruiters might hear of this bloke on Demonland and swoop in before us.

You've made hundreds of similar long, rambling conspiracy theory posts in this thread about "trojan horses" and "X ...Y". If you've got something specific to say then just say it.

I still cant believe this happened it was like a dream. Hearing the great man speak for 2 hours... it seemed surreal. He really is a mythical figure. When he said goodbye and hung up the phone, it really sunk in what had just happened. And that there's every chance we may never hear from him ever again. So glad hes doing well... 2 kids, living on the northern coast of NSW... and he confirmed all the rumours were true about running a fishing charter and working on oil rigs... amazing interview and it got very deep when he went into his fathers passing and other personal matters. Funny that he almost didn't play in the Elimination Final vs Essendon as he drive the wrong way to the ground and got there with 10 minutes to spare.... then kicked a lazy 8 goals. And he ran into Jeff Farmer in a nightclub in Perth just after Farmer left the Demons for Freo. The great man was clubbing in Perth early 2000's, well what do you know hey. Those cool little tidbits made the interview so special. Unbelievable the impact this guy made in just 47 games of footy. i was gonna say it was like Jurrah x 1000. But that doesnt even do it justice. The only comparison must be John Coleman who funnily enough he shares the record for fastest player to 100 goals. Though he played half as many games as Coleman, and had the advantage of being one of the great characters of the game. AJ was one of a kind. Jaka, you're a hero and easily the most exciting and talented player I have ever seen in the Red and Blue.

That was the best thing ever. Nothing at all like what I expected - articulate, intelligent, passionate. Awesome work guys.

Lever has shown way more than Petracca. Is Petracca worth 2 first round picks? Do the math on Lever and shut the fark up we simply didn't pay overs for Lever

I've found some more pre-draft info, including a summary from Quigley on BF, who;s one of the best in the business. Pick 12 (Adelaide) – Harley Balic Position: Midfielder/half-Back Size: 187cm/80kg Player Comparison: Scott Pendlebury In the Mix: Francis, H McKay Having lost Dangerfield in the trade period, Adelaide will be looking for a taller midfielder with a bit of class. Balic fits this criteria perfectly as a midfielder who can play forward or back. Balic excels in traffic thanks to his basketball and that, along with his height, has seen him compared to Pendlebury. When forward Balic leads to the right places and has a terrific overhead mark. The Crows will be hoping that Francis gets through to this pick, while Mathieson is another option. Quigley 13. Harley BalicHt – 187 Wt - 82Balic seems to be slipping down a few mocks in the media and I am not really sure why. If he goes where a few of those pundits have him going he could easily end up the steal of the draft. Up until this year Balic has been splitting time between basketball and AFL and as a result there are still some rough edges to be polished. I can see there being a fair bit of difference in the ratings for Balic between teams and it is not out of the question that a team could love him and take him much higher than most expect. He has a very high ceiling and if he developed to his best he could be an elite midfielder at the next level.Balic is at his best when he is the focus of a unit whether it is in the midfield, up forward or down back. When he is, he tends to rise to the occasion and good things happen around him. He is very good one on one and can impose himself on a game like few in this draft. He has improved quite a lot over the course of the year but there are still areas he needs to work on.One of the areas he has been working on, and one that still needs some work, is his kicking. There is quite a lot of difference between Balic’s best and worst and at the moment there is still a bit too much of the worst in his game. There is not a lot wrong with his kicking style and I expect that with some intense work he will flatten out the flight on his kicks and be more consistent about getting it where it needs to go. Up forward his set shot technique is entirely too variable. He needs to get a routine and stick to it and work on improving his balance in his approach a bit more. With all that said though there is quite a bit of class in what he does even by foot. He has brought a heads-up approach from basketball and he has excellent peripheral vision. He tends to play to the short options but he usually takes good ones and is very good delivering into the 50.Balic has played a lot more as an inside mid this year and he has shown pretty decent potential in that role. His kicking out of the clearances was a bit ordinary but by hand he is really good. His vision in the contest is excellent and is creative by hand getting it to good attacking options. As mentioned above he is very good one on one and he has good strength over the ball. He works through traffic well and is one of those guys who never looks rushed even when there are opponents all around him.Athletically Balic seems pretty good in everything but pace. He ran a 15.3 beep last year and he plays with excellent agility. He can also fly when he has to and tends to play tall. Speed wise he looks like he is cruising around at ¾ pace for most of the game. He is smooth around the park and, for those of you old enough to remember, moves a lot like Michael Long. He is quite solid but has a loose limbed, very agile style.Balic made a name for himself last year as a half forward and he is a very good mark. He can get up and he watches the ball into his hands very nicely. He also has very good body control in the air and he can keep the defender where he can’t get to the ball. He is not a good converter though and if he is going to play as a half forward at the start of his career he is going to need to improve his finishing.On the outside Balic looks calm and composed and can often create opportunities for his team. He has improved his spread this year a lot and upped his disposal count to 23 disposals a game in the TAC and went at 22 a game at the Champs. At times at the Champs he was in a mile of space with no-one in cooee indicating that he is working out how to use his running ability more effectively. Balic is a talent and I think could be an excellent player in a few years.

Absolutely laughable some of the posters on this site, saying the trade week was a disappointment Is just mind boggling 1: we got lever who is the best young defender in the game 2: we got balic for a bag of chips 3: we got rid of watts who doesn’t fit our list profile 4: still have 3 picks in the 2nd round has been a very good trade period for us, and no we didn’t overpay for lever it was a very fair deal

You mean the same Adelaide that gave up picks 10, 16 and 73 to the Blues along with a future second-round selection for a 28 (soon to be 29) year old Gibbs?

I didn't see any cup or medal awarded to any club at 2PM Thursday. You don't "win" or "lose" at trade week. You "improve" your list, or you "don't". We won't know for sure until next season is underway, but at this stage it looks like we have improved ours. That's the nearest to "winning" we can do in October. Go Demons!

Like how his first name is an anagram of 'angry'.

Really interesting question. Of course I'll follow Jack at PA but I feel very attached to, and excited by, the playing group at MFC. I would love to see them be successful and would love to be a part of that. The young men i have met at MFC are undoubtedly ripping young blokes. And i happily admit to having a pretty severe mancrush on Petracca. He could be anything. His lower body strength reminds me of some of the absolute greats - Matthews, Ablett Snr & Jnr, Voss. His ability to keep his feet while he's ripping the ball out of the scrums our game has become infected with is unmatched by anyone in todays game. So my attachment to the team is f#*%ing hard to let go off. But there's one more bit of information that i should disclose that makes it a little difficult for me to maintain the level of support i have given over the last 9 years. You see my son, who lives with Jack, is actually Jack's cousin. And you know what that means. At the very least i will barrack for the Dees whoever they are playing (excluding PA of course). Even against 'my' club prior to my conversion to the Dees (the Saints). And when he plays against the Dees, if Viney, TMac or Jonesy happen to give Jack a good whack around the ear I'll be there cheering them on and encouraging them to do it again. Hahaha. Little 6astard deserves it every now and again.

Apparently a lot of 2nd rucks were thrown up at trade week (Nichols, Goldy/Pruess etc.) and no one wanted them, not even GWS who knew their main ruck is about to retire. Goes to show the position has changed and teams value having 1 decent one then making do if injury's strike. A fit and dominating Gawn could change the thoughts again, so lets hope he gets back to those 2016 levels.

Our list issues will be fixed by the natural development & growth of the talent on our list currently. I think with the addition of Lever we have a top 4 team for 2018...the competition has levelled off now and we're as good a chance as any to take the prize. Saying we've made no real progress since 2006 is a croc...

No names, but my information is that you're off the mark here with some who were involved in the decision process. I'll trust my source and the info provided. They involved were fully aware and exposed to it over many years The penny was never going to drop with Jack at MFC. Tough decision needed to ne made and it was

Wrong forum... think you’re looking for the Collingwood site

We'd be stiff not to get Bonar.

Not yet. Still waiting. Once that one is done we can offer pick 2 and 5 to North for Ben Brown.

I have a huge soft spot for Col personally, so I'm glad the club has found him a suitable role. His journey from kid in Tassie who nearly had to give up footy because he couldn't get a lift to training, to the handy, gutsy defender he was during the Bailey era, to almost the posterboy for the down trodden during the Neeld era - it's been quite the ride. At his best he was quick, desperate, always put his body on the line and could play on tall or small. All the best Col, hopefully this is the start of great things.

There's some on here that will whinge when we win the flag that we should have won the GF by more. 1 point will [censored] do!!! We got what we wanted so I'm happy with that. The reports that Maxy and Tracc are close to new deals tops it off nicely.

About the only thing that's staggering is that people think that the Lever deal is staggering. Thank god some of you aren't "negotiating" for us. The object of the exercise is to get the player you want, there are no bragging rights in not getting a deal done. To come out of that Trade Period with our picks intact but nothing to show for it but Harley Balic would have been a disaster, especially in light of what Lever brings.

1 - Wrong. We gave up fair value for the biggest fish of the trade period. 2 - We got fair value for Watts 3 - Hes talented, could go either way, only cost pick 66.

Destined for Essendon unfortunately.... 'Arm Syringe'