Gunston locked and loaded for Brisbane
BRISBANE has secured Jack Gunston to bolster its forward line, and coach Chris Fagan has met the former Hawk in Melbourne, as he prepares to return to the Lions.
The Lions closed the deal by handing over pick 48 and a future fourth-rounder to Hawthorn on Tuesday morning.
Fagan is on a leave of absence but met Hawks triplepremiership forward Gunston for a lap around Albert Park lake on Monday as the Lions prepared to trade for the 30year-old.
Having secured pick 35 for Dan McStay in free-agency compensation, the Lions will only pick up about 100 extra draft points in the exchange that saw them try to protect the McStay compensation pick.
On Friday, the Lions confirmed Fagan’s return to the club ahead of the start of preseason was on track, with the coaching stalwart in Melbourne meeting family this week.
Lions football boss Danny Daly said the club was unsure of a return date but he was likely to meet Fagan in Melbourne in coming days as he dealt with accusations from First Nations players from his time at Hawthorn.
“Fages is down in Melbourne visiting his mum. Him and Jack are pretty close,” Daly said.
“With ‘D Mac’ going out, which is unfortunate, he (Gunston) fits the bill. We know he can go and play up on a wing or go behind the ball. He has a few strings to his bow. He will be really handy for us. He brings some experience to our forward line so we have just got to get it done.
“He is 30 and he has three flags and we haven’t got too many blokes in our side who have played in premierships so it’s always good to get that experience. Even to help our younger forwards coming through, it’s a good acquisition for us.”
The Lions on Tuesday hoped to step up their chase for Western Bulldogs bestand-fairest winner Josh Dunkley but have been unable to secure a higher pick than their current No.21. Despite their efforts, rival clubs with picks inside the 20s are unwilling to trade them so far.
It means the Bulldogs will have to accept pick 21 and the Lions’ future first-rounder for Dunkley if they hope to move on Fremantle’s Rory Lobb before Wednesday’s trade deadline.
The Dockers are now expected to release Lobb but would drive a hard bargain on him, potentially even asking for a late first-rounder from Luke Beveridge’s side.