SIX CATS UP FOR GRABS

Six Cats await fate as wheeling & dealing starts

THE futures of six Geelong playe players are set to be decided over the next 10 days when the AFL AFL’s trade period starts today. L Lincoln McCarthy has asked to jo join Brisbane and a deal likely t to involve a swap of draft pic picks could be done as early as this morning. Tim Kelly has also requ quested to be traded to West Coast, while George Horlin-Smith is likely to leave for Gold Coast as an unrest stricted free agent. D Daniel Menzel, Jackson Thurlow and Jordan Murdoch have all been told by the Cats to explore the possibility of joining a new club.

Thurlow, pictured left, said he was hopeful of finding a new home, but admitted interest might only be sparked late in the trade window.

“It’s hard to know where I am placed,” Thurlow said.

“At the moment every club has a big dog they are sorting out. There’s been some interest, but as I said there’s a lot of water to go under the bridge.

“Hopefully something sorts itself out.”

The 2012 first-round pick has played just 46 games, appearing seven times this year.

A serious knee injury wiped out Thurlow’s entire 2016 and he has not been able to cement a spot in the team since. He said being in and out of the team had been mentally draining.

“It takes its toll, you spend a lot of time building yourself up to play each week, especially if you think you’re a chance to play,” he said.

“I was in the squad, I don’t know, 20 times, and I played seven games and the rest I was emergency. I just want to play AFL footy. The childhood dream when I was younger was to play as many games as I could and I have been able to play some games but not as many as I would like.

“If that dream can continue somewhere else then so be it.”

Murdoch admitted he was still in the dark about his future.

“No one knows that much at the moment,” Murdoch said before Geelong’s best-and-fairest.

“To be honest, I really don’t know what the future holds … and I think Geelong don’t know either.

“That’s certainly an option, to remain at Geelong, and there’s an option that I won’t be.”

Murdoch said he was “happy to see what options are there”.

“If the best option is to stay at Geelong, then I’m more than happy to,” he said. “I love the place and I love the people.”

Delisted Cat Timm House said there had been a “few nibbles” from AFL clubs as he looks to keep his footy dream alive.

“(There’s) nothing too serious, but three or four that are interested in having a little bit of a conversation,” he said.

“We’ll get a little bit more clarity after all the trading’s finished, and hopefully we’ve got somewhere to go.”