Cornes would move “heaven and earth” to trade Oliver if he were Dees as reports re-emerge.

AFL Media’s Cal Twomey reports that rival teams are mulling a move for Melbourne’s Clayton Oliver this off-season.

Oliver was a hot topic last offseason, with Adelaide, St Kilda, and Geelong among the teams who expressed interest in him during a volatile off-season.

Following a delayed offseason, Oliver appeared in 21 games for Melbourne in 2024, but suffered with form, knee, hand, and rib ailments at times.

According to AFL Trade Radio’s Josh Jenkins and Damian Barrett, if competitors are considering trading for Oliver, they must feel they can help him regain his peak form.

Because Oliver is also bound until the end of 2030 on a lucrative deal, Barrett believes Melbourne would have to be willing to pay part of what he owes in the future if a transfer were to take place.

Jenkins stated, “It’s a big decision if you’re going after him with six years and (more than) $5.5 million still owed to him.”

“You’d want to be confident you can get him back to his best.”

Barrett suggests observing Melbourne’s current actions to determine their willingness to pay a portion of the cost.

“We’ll find out in the next two and a half to three weeks how much the Melbourne Football Club wants or does not want Clayton Oliver to be a part of it.

“The fact that it (trade speculations) has surfaced again shows that the clubs are the first to know when a possibility arises.

In response to Geelong’s renewed interest in Oliver, Kane Cornes stated that if he were Melbourne, he would go to any length to get rid of Oliver’s contract, including offering a draft selection to a rival club to cover his pay.

“He has six years remaining on a contract to Melbourne where his average annual wage exceeds $1 million,” Cornes stated on SEN Sportsday.

“If I were Melbourne, I would move heaven and earth to get that $6 million off my books.”

“In fact, I indicated all year that I’d give you a draft selection if you were willing to take that contract off Melbourne’s hands.

“That’s how much I’d be willing to pay to get Clayton Oliver out of my football club, so you don’t have to deal with it (off-field troubles) again and you free up salary cap space.

“Geelong they’ve been linked to another player in Bailey Smith, so I’m not sure how they do it (trade for Oliver).”

Oliver, 27, will be 33 by the time his contract ends at the end of the 2030 AFL season. on.

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