Blake Acres during Carlton training, November 21, 2022. (Photo by Jake Benoiton)
Carlton recruit Blake Acres has explained the reasoning behind his move back to Victoria and the conversations with Blues coach Michael Voss that attracted him to Princes Park.
Off the back of a career-best campaign, Acres requested a move to Carlton while he also had suitors in Geelong and North Melbourne reportedly moving for his services.
The 27-year-old, who departed St Kilda at the end of the 2019 season, would be among several key Dockers players to leave Cockburn this off-season, with the wingman severing ties with Fremantle after just three seasons with the club.
Acres favoured a return to Victoria despite moving back to his home state of Western Australia by joining the Dockers three years ago, with the West Perth product revealing he "couldn't say no" to moving back east.
"I think a lot of people see it as a strange one," Acres told AFL.com.au.
"I moved back home and then now I've come back to Victoria," Acres said.
"To be honest, I was quite settled here before I went back to Perth. My partner is from Victoria, and I loved living in Victoria before I went back to Perth, not to say I didn't love living in Perth, I've loved both.
"This was a good opportunity for me and for my career to come back to Victoria and play for Carlton. I couldn't say no to it."
The spike in interest for Acres came as the Dockers midfielder pieced together a strong ninth season in the AFL, where he averaged career-highs for disposals, marks, rebounds 50s and inside 50s from his 20 games in purple last year.
The strong campaign placed Acres among the best-rated wingmen in the competition, sparking interest from the Blues as they look to bolster their outside midfield stocks.
Acres revealed he only first met with new coach Michael Voss on his first day of pre-season training, but a handful of calls between the pair helped Acres find a path to Ikon Park through the trade period.
"We only had a few phone calls," Acres said.
"We spoke about my role and the opportunity with where Carlton is at and what they're hoping to achieve in the coming years.
"It was a tough decision at the time but also Vossy made it really streamlined for me and simple in what role I'll play.
"I only really met him day one of pre-season, I had a good conversation with him then. He has been great so far."
Acres will pull on the No.13 jumper for the Blues from this year, with his first match for Carlton likely to come in Round 1 when they face Richmond in the 2023 season opener in March at the MCG.
A game against his former club, the Dockers, won't come until Round 17 however, when the Blues travel west to face Fremantle at Optus Stadium in July.