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Unpacking Ah Chee: Could Port hijack Adelaide’s pursuit?
Andrew Slevison • October 16th, 2025 12:07 pm
The Callum Ah Chee case is a curious one.
The two-time Brisbane Lions premiership player was all set to join the Adelaide Crows on deadline day, but in the end a deal could not be agreed upon.
Now there is a chance that Ah Chee, if he really wants to leave the Lions, enters either the National Draft or Pre-Season Draft once his Brisbane contract expires on October 31.
The Pre-Season Draft looks the more likely scenario which gives the Power a little sniff if they want to go down that path.
Port list manager Jason Cripps admits the club had never shown any interest in the 28-year-old but that could all change once he makes contact with his manager Ben Williams.
“The Callum situation has only just arisen in the last 24 hours,” Cripps said on SEN SA Breakfast.
“We’ll have that discussion internally and I’ll certainly be having that discussion with his manager, Ben Williams, just to see what that may look like.
“What I will see is we haven’t had any interest in Callum up to this point. Without going into specific details of our planning, our strategy was to position ourselves strongly into the future as opposed to this period in the player acquisition space.
“We just need to reassess that now and see where Callum sits, and what the terms and conditions may be that come within the pre-season draft.
“We’ll have those discussions both internally and with his manager Ben Williams.”
Crows did not meet Lions' valuation
As for the failed trade itself, Lions list boss Dom Ambrogio broke down what happened with the Crows.
He made it quite clear that what the Crows were offering in return for Ah Chee did not meet their valuation of him.
“We didn’t feel it was fair value for Cal, that’s all we ever sought,” Ambrogio said on AFL Trade Radio’s Deadline Debrief.
“It’s been widely reported what we would have sought for him which was a pick slide. At the end of the day we just didn’t think that was fair value for a player of Cal’s calibre.
“What was put forward was a future second and a future third. We sought to replace that future third with a pick slide. We moved a long way in the negotiations to find a middle ground, but we needed to maintain the value to us.
“The only difference between our best offers was a slide from 16 back to 23, both first-round picks. We’d likely use the pick for points and likely the other picks used in and around that for points (as well).
“So by the time selection actually comes to be used it would possible be less than a seven-pick slide.”
Could the Lions now lose the former Sun for nothing?
Ambrogio explained the situation.
“The reality is a future third is window dressing, particularly for a successful club. That pick can end up back in the 50s and picks in the 50s are very rarely used.
“So effectively we’re looking at a fairly late-ish pick and we just didn’t find that acceptable. We were really clear about that from the start.”
He continued: “Ultimately Cal is not a free agent.
“But we just can’t hand him over for anything other than fair value.
“I’m aware that Ben has made some alternate comments to that, but that’s his choice. Now it’s up to the attracting party that is compelled to do the deal.”
Where to from here?
So, what happens now?
Ambrogio insists that Brisbane would love to retain the services of a big-game player who was voted best in finals in 2024.
“We wanted him to stay, we still do. If he elects to leave that will be his choice,” Ambrogio concluded.
“When you sign an AFL contract you’re bound by the rules of the AFL. You might not like it.
“Everyone has been really clear about what the mechanics are and how this would play out from the very start. We had early conversations about this, so I don’t think is a surprise to anyone.”
Crows are committed
Furthermore, the Crows released a statement via list manager Justin Reid on Wednesday night stating their desire to still acquire Ah Chee.
“We certainly explored many avenues in our endeavours to get a deal done with Brisbane,” Reid said.
“Callum has given great service to the Lions and we see him as a player who can really help improve our squad.
“We’re committed to Callum joining the Club and he is committed to joining us.”
