Pies, Tigers met with Zak Butters, with Nick Daicos involved in Collingwood’s pitch

Collingwood and Richmond have both met with Port Adelaide midfielder Zak Butters, with the Magpies using their champion Nick Daicos as part of their in-person pitch to the game’s most-accomplished free agent.

The Magpies and Tigers – both viewed as trailing the Western Bulldogs, in particular, and Geelong, in the race for Butters – have nonetheless held face-to-face meetings with the Port Adelaide superstar, sources familiar with the meetings have confirmed.

Collingwood’s decision to make Daicos part of their pitch to Butters – the 23-year-old superstar was in the club’s meeting with Butters during this season – is a measure of Daicos’ value as a selling point to players, but also of Collingwood’s wish to support their young superstar with seasoned quality via free agency.

The Magpies are among the main contenders to land the Brisbane Lions’ dual Brownlow medallist Lachie Neale, whom Collingwood officials, including chief executive Craig Kelly, met with on the Gold Coast in recent weeks.

Neale, who is an unrestricted free agent, has the options of moving back to Perth, where his wife Jules has returned since their very public separation, to remain in Brisbane, or to move to either Melbourne or Adelaide.

Within the clubs, the Bulldogs are viewed as the clear frontrunners for Butters, followed by Geelong, despite Richmond’s greater capacity to meet Port Adelaide’s need for draft compensation should Butters choose to return to Victoria, as clubs believe likely. The Tigers also have massive salary cap room for an AFL-leading, long-term Butters contract.

Richmond’s 2024 No.1 pick Sam Lalor has a relationship with Butters, who hails from Darley, near Lalor’s home town of Bacchus Marsh in the outer reaches of Melbourne’s west.

Port have vowed they will match any free-agent offer for Butters, which means they will be seeking multiple first-round picks for their premier midfielder. If they did not match the relevant offer, they would receive one first-round pick (pick No.4, based on the current ladder).

Port’s intention to match offers and force a favourable trade makes it difficult for Collingwood to compete for Butters’ services, even in the unlikely event that he nominated them, given Collingwood’s wish to retain a first-round pick this year as they attempt to regenerate the oldest list in the AFL.

The Magpies are clearly seeking to remain in finals contention – by bringing in mature recruits who can impact immediately – whilst introducing youth to a list that will lose several veterans, headed by Scott Pendlebury, Steele Sidebottom and Jeremy Howe, soon. Geelong is the only club that has successfully straddled those objectives over the past dozen years.

The Lions have been in regular discussions with Neale’s management about his future, and face the prospect of potentially losing another free agent, Zac Bailey, to free agency – Bailey having received a sizeable offer from Adelaide that the Lions are unlikely to match if he exercises his free-agency rights.

Hawthorn held an interest in Butters, but remain keen on Essendon’s star Zach Merrett, who is contracted for 2027 and viewed as likely to seek a trade again this year after the Bombers declined to move him last October. Their training base in Dingley, obviously, is much further from Butters’ home town than the Bulldogs or inner-city Melbourne clubs, and a longer trip than Geelong.

The Hawks are the lead suitors for Gold Coast’s free agent key forward Ben King, should he decide to leave. King had indicated to this masthead his preference to stick with the Suns, who have had a two-year offer on the table for some time.

Port Adelaide believe they will need the equivalent to picks No.4 and 8 in the national draft to match a bid for their next-generation academy gun Dougie Cochrane if the team with pick No.1 placed a bid on him.

While they would match a bid for Butters regardless of the Cochrane scenario, the tough new draft-bid rules provide further incentive for forcing a trade and gaining multiple early picks.

Butters and Daicos will meet again on the field next weekend when the Magpies tackle Port Adelaide, the superstar pair having played together for Victoria in the State of Origin game back in February, when they were among the best afield.

Keep up to date with the best AFL coverage in the country. Sign up for the Real Footy newsletter.