North Melbourne's former Pick 4 in the national draft, Zane Duursma, has requested a trade to Melbourne after three seasons at AFL level.
The 21-year-old mid-sized forward no doubt has mercurial abilities, but he is yet to dominate an AFL game or show any consistency at the grade.
This means placing a price on Duursma, who originally cost the Roos a lot at the draft - Hawthorn star Nick Watson went the pick after him - is hard to figure out.
North Melbourne won't want to lose out on the deal, and given Duursma is not a free agent, Melbourne will have to trade for him. The Demons can't walk him through the draft either, as the Kangaroos finished lower than them on the ladder, allowing the Roos first dibs.
The AFL trade period begins in a month, meaning the Roos and Dees have four weeks to plan out what they want to secure in the deal. Here are three ways we think the deal for Duursma to become a Demon can get done:
Player-for-player (and a pick) swap
Melbourne trade: Harrison Petty
North Melbourne trade: Zane Duursma, third round pick
Petty for Duursma and a packet of chips, who says no?
Duursma no doubt is more physically gifted than Petty, but the Demon has had his best and most consistent season yet with 26 goals from his last 12 games, including an imposing performance against Fremantle at the MCG in Round 22.
However, Petty can still be an up-and-down player, as evidenced by his finals performance against Carlton, which was poor.
If he were to be traded to North Melbourne, it would most likely be as a key defender, unless the emerging Cooper Trembath was swung into defence and Petty partnered Nick Larkey in attack.
Petty is only 26 years old and has enough years left in the tank to be part of the Roos' finals and flag push. He is contracted until the end of next season, but Duursma would be equally hard to get a deal done for given he is not a free agent and must be traded for.
