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📻 IMPORTANT AUCKLAND UPDATE 📻
“Hamstrung” Blues must seriously consider trading stars
Andrew Slevison • June 9th, 2025 1:39 pm
In order to truly contend, Carlton has been urged to consider a pair of big-name trades.
As the Blues continue their pursuit of an elusive premiership, they have been implored to make some massive moves in a bid to shake things up.
Harry McKay’s name has often been thrown in the mix when considering which players the Blues could offload with the view to revitalising their list.
Internally, the Blues would have little to no desire to trade the Coleman Medallist, but nevertheless, the point keeps being made.
In the wake of Sunday night’s narrow eight-point win over Essendon, in which McKay did not play, SEN’s David King wonders what a trade conversation would look and sound like given he is contracted until 2030.
He feels the two-pronged key forward attack of McKay and Charlie Curnow makes the Blues way too predictable and cumbersome, and change needs to be made.
“I think they need to now have a discussion, not off the back of this game necessarily,” King said on SEN’s Fireball.
“If your vision's taken by the two big boppers (McKay and Curnow), and you just blast the ball, and they fell back into that a little bit (against the Bombers). I still think they've got to open their eyes on what Harry McKay is for them.
“Is he absolutely there (at Carlton) next year? That is the question I think we need to be asking.”
Short of trading him, the Blues should at least look to move McKay to defence in the eyes of King.
“And if he is there, are there other options for him? I know (Jack) Silvagni's doing a great job, and (Jacob) Weitering is a top-liner,” he added.
“Could McKay play centre half-back and a little bit of second ruck? I think he'd be a super centre half-back. He’s got all the attributes to play the role.
“I just don't know if they need him forward of the ball. They look more dynamic with (Mitch) McGovern.
“He's not a star, McGovern, but he can travel, he can run.”
Co-host Kane Cornes believes Carlton’s glaring need, first and foremost, is a top quality small forward.
As the developing Jesse Motlop continues to improve his game, the Blues must target an elite small, says Cornes.
“What they need is an elite small forward,” said Cornes.
“They should definitely persist with Motlop, but there needs to be another elite small forward.
“Now, if that's at the expense of Harry McKay, I think that's OK. That's a big decision to make.
“What's his value? How much of the contract are you going to have to pay? All of that is up for discussion.”
The other established Blues star whose name has been thrown on the trade heap is midfielder Sam Walsh.
The 24-year-old, who is contracted until the end of 2026, is a target for a number of clubs including Geelong, St Kilda and Hawthorn, and could be the man to unlock some much-needed draft capital.
“The other one is Walsh,” Cornes added.
“Someone with a lot of interest that you can move on, not through anything that he's done poorly, or any of his fault, just that the mix of the midfield - is it the right mix with Walsh, (Adam) Cerra and (Patrick) Cripps?”
King asked: “Why would you be getting rid of Walsh?”
Cornes firmly believes that Carlton’s tight salary cap in its current form will only hamper the club’s premiership pursuit.
“Because he's the one with the value, and he's the one with the shortest contract that you can actually move out for one or two first-round draft picks and free up some room in (the cap),” he continued.
“They are hamstrung, the Blues. You've got to factor that in from a salary cap point of view, from a (draft) pick point of view, they don't have their pick.
“Now if you want to revamp the list and if there's glaring holes in it, small forward, running defender…”
The conversation morphed into a back and forth about what the trade value of both players, particularly McKay, would be.
Read the thoughts of King and Cornes below:
King: “I’m not getting rid of Walsh for a small forward.”
Cornes: “But you get rid of him for draft picks, so you can address that.
“You need the capital to be able to do some moves.”
King: “(I'm trading) McKay before Walsh.”
Cornes: “He (McKay) has got the long-term deal which makes it really difficult to move.”
King: “Clubs pay for the long-term deals.”
Cornes: “What do you think you're going to get for Harry?”
King: “Not too dissimilar to what you're going to get for Walsh.
“What do you get, a pick in the late teens?”
Cornes: “I think you'd get more than that for Walsh.”
King: “For Harry?”
Cornes: “Yeah, and then also how much you're going to have to pay.
“It’s an interesting discussion. I just think it's a hard one to be able to move him.
“And if there's teams coming hard for Walsh and he's got one year to go, and it's similar to Zak Butters, if he's going to go anyway, do we look at moving him? Is that giving us some flexibility?”
Listen to the review of the Blues win below:
