THERE was once a time when playing at three clubs was a relative rarity – not any more.
The late trades of Tom Mitchell to Collingwood, Jaeger O'Meara to Fremantle and Rory Lobb to the Western Bulldogs capped a Continental Tyres AFL Trade Period in which eight players were moved to a third club.
Eight!
O'Meara's addition to the three-club club came as the biggest surprise, only put on the radar in the final 48 hours of the trade period as Hawthorn go into full rebuild mode.
It continues a rollercoaster career for the 28-year-old midfielder, who won the NAB AFL Rising Star award in his first season at Gold Coast in 2013 and then moved to the Hawks three years later after persistent knee injuries.
THAT'S A WRAP Who's in, who's out after the 2022 Trade Period
Mitchell's path has been eerily similar.
The son of former Sydney great Barry, he played four years at the Swans before moving to Hawthorn with O'Meara, winning a Brownlow Medal in 2018 and now starting again with the Magpies.
Lobb got to the Bulldogs and will now play at not only his third club, but his third state following 74 games with Greater Western Sydney and 66 with the Dockers.
Likewise triple-premiership Hawk Jack Gunston will play in his third state after starting with Adelaide and now getting to Brisbane, while former No.2 draft pick Josh Schache also reached a third club in Melbourne after playing for the Lions and Bulldogs.
After a terrific 2022 with Fremantle, wingman Blake Acres was the first trade of the period, signing up for Carlton after starting his career at St Kilda.
TRADE TRACKER Every pick swap and free agency move
Inside midfielder Will Setterfield (GWS, Carlton and now Essendon) and key position player Billy Frampton (Port Adelaide, Adelaide and now Collingwood) also joined the list.
Sydney ruckman Tom Hickey continues to stand above the present-day pack though, soldiering on into a 13th season with his fourth club after previously playing for Gold Coast, St Kilda and West Coast.
INDICATIVE DRAFT ORDER Check out your club's picks
Four men are no longer part of the three-club club, with Mitch Brown, Shaun Higgins, Paddy Ryder and Josh Caddy all hanging up the boots during 2022.
The lists below include current players only.
The three-club club
|
Player |
First club |
Second club |
Current club |
|
Blake Acres** |
St Kilda |
Fremantle |
Carlton |
|
James Aish |
Brisbane |
Collingwood |
Fremantle |
|
Josh Bruce |
GWS |
St Kilda |
Western Bulldogs |
|
Tom Campbell |
Western Bulldogs |
North Melbourne |
St Kilda |
|
Billy Frampton** |
Port Adelaide |
Adelaide |
Collingwood |
|
Sam Frost |
GWS |
Melbourne |
Hawthorn |
|
Hugh Greenwood |
Adelaide |
Gold Coast |
North Melbourne |
|
Jack Gunston** |
Adelaide |
Hawthorn |
Brisbane |
|
Bradley Hill |
Hawthorn |
Fremantle |
St Kilda |
|
Jesse Hogan |
Melbourne |
Fremantle |
GWS |
|
Rory Lobb** |
GWS |
Fremantle |
Western Bulldogs |
|
Jarryd Lyons |
Adelaide |
Gold Coast |
Brisbane |
|
Stefan Martin |
Melbourne |
Brisbane |
Western Bulldogs |
|
Tom Mitchell** |
Sydney |
Hawthorn |
Collingwood |
|
Jaeger O'Meara** |
Gold Coast |
Hawthorn |
Fremantle |
|
Andrew Phillips |
GWS |
Carlton |
Essendon |
|
Jared Polec |
Brisbane |
Port Adelaide |
North Melbourne |
|
Braydon Preuss |
North Melbourne |
Melbourne |
GWS |
|
Adam Saad |
Gold Coast |
Essendon |
Carlton |
|
Josh Schache** |
Brisbane |
Western Bulldogs |
Melbourne |
|
Will Setterfield** |
GWS |
Carlton |
Essendon |
|
Tyson Stengle |
Richmond |
Adelaide |
Geelong |
|
Adam Treloar |
GWS |
Collingwood |
Western Bulldogs |
|
Josh Walker |
Geelong |
Brisbane |
North Melbourne |
The four-club club
|
Tom Hickey |
Gold Coast |
St Kilda |
West Coast |
Sydney |
Listed but didn't play for original club
|
Jon Ceglar |
Collingwood* |
Hawthorn |
Geelong |
|
Joel Hamling |
Geelong* |
Western Bulldogs |
Fremantle |
|
Alex Keath |
Gold Coast* |
Adelaide |
Western Bulldogs |
|
Sam Menegola |
Hawthorn* |
Fremantle* |
Geelong |
* Didn't play a game for this club
** Players who moved clubs in this year's Trade Period and free agency windows
