Jones on track for Bulldogs reunion

TASMANIAN Liam Jones is on track to make an extraordinary return to the Western Bulldogs eight years after they traded him for the No. 46 draft selection that secured them premiership defender Caleb Daniel.

The Dogs are believed to have offered Jones (pictured) a three-year deal, with Essendon out of the race for the defender and Gold Coast showing only lukewarm preliminary interest.

Jones’ manager Shane Casley said on Monday he was not locked in to return to the Dogs but everything lines up for him to find a way back to the club where he battled to make his mark as a key forward.

Jones played five seasons for the Dogs as an erratic but gifted key forward, then was traded for pick 46 before eventually finding his niche as a key back.

He is believed to be keen to slot into a side that has battled to find the right defensive mix, as shown by the demotion of high-profile acquisition Alex Keath from the side to play Geelong tomorrow.

The three-year offer is an astonishing show of faith in the key position defender but shows the lack of available key position defenders on the market.

Former Blue Jones has finished his stint at QAFL club Palm Beach, with the Western Bulldogs leading the charge for his services.

The AFL would have to allow him to return to an AFL list given retired players who negotiate a financial settlement have to step out of the game for 18 months.

But given he was forced from the game because of the pandemic and his vaccine hesitancy it is likely the AFL will reinstate him.

Jones will turn 32 in February but contenders for his services have been told one club is in the position to lock him away for three seasons.

Gold Coast watched him at the weekend.