Brierty confirms interest in Baker

Fremantle Executive General Manager of Football Joe Brierty confirmed the club’s interest in Richmond’s Liam Baker on AFL Trade Radio on Monday morning.

On Friday, Hawthorn sent its much-discussed pick 14 to Carlton in exchange for Carlton’s future first- and second-round draft picks, with the implications of the move opening the door to several clubs in the league.

“It (Friday’s pick swap) may have opened the door and we’ll consider what that looks like and have those discussions,” Brierty told AFL Trade Radio.

“From our perspective, there have been ongoing conversations with Liam (Baker) throughout the journey, even going back to his previous contract with Richmond.

“We understand that he still has a desire to go to the West Coast and that is the position they would like to get to, and from our standpoint we respect that.

“As I said, it is something that we have discussed with him on an ongoing basis over a long period of time, and he fits our roster and our profile.

We respect the fact that there is still a lot to play for.”

Brierty also confirmed the Club’s interest in Shai Bolton, after Peter Bell confirmed a deal had been completed to swap Bolton to Richmond last week.

“We look at Shai’s talent and the situation they’re in and we look at the consistency of the market and feel like the supply is very strong for him,” Brierty said.

“Ultimately, as a club we must be responsible and balanced in our approach. We would like to see Shai at our football club, but as it stands we feel there is a very strong offer.

“Those conversations will continue to evolve, but that’s where it stands now.”

Brierty also confirmed that two of Fremantle’s key players were recovering well from injuries sustained late in the season.

“Hayden Young suffered a small fracture to his leg in the last race of the year and will be returning to running more or less in the coming weeks,” Brierty said.

“Sean Darcy was the one who was obviously done with a few rounds left in the year and had a bit of knee trouble, and luckily he’s making good progress at the moment.

“We probably don’t expect him to be able to train fully before Christmas, but we would like to see him train fully again in the new year.”