The Dockers are building nicely for the future, and have a few promising victories in season 2021 under their belt which will give all involved a lot of confidence
However, there are still some missing cogs in the system which need to be addressed, and these will most likely be filled by dipping into the market and splashing some cash.
We continue our ‘Five trade targets for every club’ series with Fremantle. The idea of these stories is to identify potentially gettable targets who could fill roles, not just link every club to the likes of Marcus Bontempelli and Patrick Cripps.
In no particular order, here are five players which the Dockers recruitment team would do well to target and potentially poach.
Tipped to be one of the hottest off-contract stars this trade period, Tigers enigmatic midfielder Shai Bolton will be commanding huge money no matter where he lands this summer.
The 22-year-old has been playing some incredible footy this year, and has the stats to go with it. He is averaging 4.6 total clearances per game, 1.6 marks inside 50 per game and 2.6 shots at goal per game.
As said before, it'll take a monster pay packet to get Bolton to make the switch. However, with young midfielder Adam Cerra reportedly set on moving back to Victoria, and Bolton hailing from WA, there is a scenario that could play out which would see both clubs satisfied sufficiently with the trade.
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The Doggies defender has been so-so over the last couple of years, but has stringed together some consistent game time again in season 2021. With a great turn of pace about him as well as a thumping kick, Johannisen would be a fantastic asset for Justin Longmuir's side.
His averages are solid for a man of his position, running at 82.7% disposal efficiency and 78.2% by foot. His distribution would be valuable for Fremantle, and would provide some great run out of defence.
Hailing from WA too, there is a large chance that he could be lured back home to play for the Dockers.
Last year's Grand Final sprint winner, Clark has played 30 games since his debut in 2019. He didn't play a huge part in Geelong's run to the finals in 2020, but has since come back into the lineup for 2021 and looked very solid in midfield and defence.
Unfortunately Clark has found himself in and out of Chris Scott's side throughout the year and is sure to have his frustrations building.
Being from WA, Clark could be tempted to move back home to play for a Fremantle outfit which is only growing game-by-game. His pace, as shown in the above clip, would be huge for the Dockers and could use some more pace in their midfield.
Another player from the Cattery, Quinton Narkle hasn't featured majorly for the Cats over his career, being in-and-out of the team over the four years he's been at the club.
An ACL injury in 2017 and another hamstring injury last year has hampered his run, but there are no doubts that the midfielder does have some great talent.
Similar to his teammate Clark, Narkle is from Perth and wouldn't put a big dent at all in Geelong's salary cap.
Snaring him from the Cats would be massive for the Dockers, with another exciting midfielder being added to the ranks doing little to harm their future plans.
A name that will be thrown around even more now following his starring role in the Tigers attack during their win over the Crows on Sunday is Callum Coleman-Jones.
The tall ruck/forward booted four majors in only his second game of AFL football and looked right at home in the Richmond forward-line.
That being said, he is off-contract come season's end, and will undoubtedly have a host of suitors at his doorstep trying to snare him for a rival club. Despite being from South Australia, if Fremantle were to give him the right contract length and money, do not be surprised if he decides to make the switch to Perth.
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