With just one round left in the AFLW season, trade talks are heating up with some of the game’s biggest names set to move.

Sydney, Collingwood and Port Adelaide will feature heavily in particular.

Get fresh details on who could leave and where they’ll end up in our AFLW Trade State of Play!

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THE BIG FISH… AND WHAT IT MEANS FOR SWANS

Pun fully intended, Zippy Fish is the big fish of the 2026 AFLW trade period.

And while Sydney remains hopeful of retaining Fish, rival clubs would be surprised now if the young star half-back wasn’t wearing purple next year.

Fish, the 2025 Rising Star and All-Australian, has been a sensation for the Swans across the past two seasons, vindicating the club’s decision to back its development program by selecting her with Pick 5 in the 2024 AFLW draft.

‘This is not my burden to bear’ | 06:25

With Fish’s homesickness and off-contract situation well known across the competition, many clubs inquired about the prospect of landing the young star. Clubs like North Melbourne and, more recently, Geelong have been linked to Fish, who’s also considering remaining at the Swans.

Fish has wrestled with her call for most of the season and would almost certainly wait until Sydney’s season is finished to finalise her decision. But 10 rival clubs surveyed by foxfooty.com.au in the past week said they expected Fish to nominate the Dockers – the team she supported as a kid and was aligned to via its Next Generation Academy before being drafted.

A Fish trade request would force the Dockers to work out a deal that satisfies the Swans, who are looking to stockpile late first-round and second-round picks ahead of December’s national draft.

Fish breaks free of a Hayler Miller tackle in Round 4 last year against Walyalup (Fremantle) at Henson Park.Source: Getty Images

Five Swans academy players are considered top 25 prospects in this year’s draft: Charlotte Tidemann, Frankie Walsh, Ash Barlow, Aurelia Russell and Evie Bowie. But Sydney, as it stands, doesn’t hold a first-round pick after it sent the selection to Brisbane last year in the trade for All-Australian forward Taylor Smith.

While the Swans matched bids on utility Ally Neyland and ruck Maddie Quinn at last year’s draft, they couldn’t also match the bid on midfielder Kiera Yerbury, who was ultimately selected by the Giants.

It comes amid a list squeeze at Sydney, which has re-signed the likes of Lucy McEvoy (until 2031), Ally Morphett (2030) and Sofia Hurley (2028) this year.

Foxfooty.com.au also understands the club is keen to lock away Chloe Molloy (contracted until 2027) on a new two-year extension. The superstar forward continued her brilliant 2026 campaign on Sunday, kicking five goals to take her season tally to a competition-high 24 goals.

Despite Zippy Fish’s expected exit this off-season, there’s still plenty to smile about at Sydney… just ask Chloe Molloy!Source: Getty Images

As much as they’d love to keep her, a Fish exit could prove crucial to the Swans’ draft strategy. AFLW teams can only match bids on club-tied players using a selection within 18 picks of when the bid is launched. That rule, however, will be tightened from next year onwards, with clubs wanting to match a bid placed between Picks 1 and 19 to use a selection within 10 picks of the bid.

Fremantle currently holds Pick 9, which, along with a future first-rounder, could form the basis of a deal for Fish. The Swans would then look to slide back in the order and secure multiple selections in the late teens to mid-20s – picks that could prove invaluable in matching bids on their academy prospects.

Gun running Swans academy defender Tidemann is considered a top-five player, while hard-running winger Walsh is also expected to attract a bid in the top 10.

Should Fish leave the Swans, one rival club told foxfooty.com.au this week Tidemann is the closest player in this year’s draft class to Fish due to her willingness to take the game on from defence with line-breaking speed and penetrating kick.

“When I think of myself as an AFLW player, I dream of being a Swan and I can see myself as a Swan,” Tidemann told foxfooty.com.au at last month’s AFLW draft combine.

“But anything can happen and I’d be so happy to go anywhere.

“No one has made up their mind yet … Someone can say they’re taking you and then you actually have no idea.”

Egan settles into life at Crows | 02:45

ALL EYES ON THE POWER

Port Adelaide is looming as one of the most active teams for this year’s trade period.

The Power have locked away some of their biggest names this year, signing superstar ruck Matilda Scholz on a lucrative three-year extension until the end of 2030. The likes of Ella Heads (2030), Teagan Germech (2030), Ash Woodland (2029) and Shineah Goody (2029) in the past two months have also re-signed with Port long-term.

But it’s led to a 2026 salary cap squeeze at the Power, with a few players now set to explore their options while the club also looks to bring other players in.

Young gun key forward Lauren Young, who remains uncontracted beyond this year, would prefer to remain at Alberton, but will consider strong rival interest in the coming weeks.

Young, widely considered the best player in her draft class, signed with Port in November 2023 as part of the expansion pre-signing period. But an ACL rupture in March 2024 – the second of her career – delayed her debut until Round 6, 2025 after an 18-month recovery.

The 21-year-old has enjoyed a smoother run at it in 2026, kicking seven goals in 10 of a possible 11 games to share the club lead.

But cashed-up rival clubs are looking to prise Young out of Port.

Foxfooty.com.au understands Adelaide has emerged as a suitor for Young, who grew up supporting the Crows, while multiple Victorian-based clubs, including Essendon, are also circling the 178cm key forward.

Young could join a rare group of players in the AFLW to move to a cross-town rival in South Australia.Source: Getty Images

The Bombers are also tipped to secure Young’s teammate Jas Sowden, whose 2026 campaign has been hampered by a foot injury after claiming the Power’s Best First-Year Player award in 2025.

Third-year midfielder Piper Window has also attracted interest from rival clubs, despite being contracted until the end of 2027. Window, who’s played 26 games in three seasons for the Power, is set to assess her options post-season, with the Giants and Melbourne understood to have some interest in her.

Key forward Julia Teakle, who was left out of Port’s side for the first three matches of the season, is another contracted Power player attracting interest from multiple clubs.

Fellow key-position player Indy Tahau, who was the competition’s leading goalkicker and All-Australian full-forward last year, remains unsigned beyond this season, but is considered a good chance to remain at Alberton on a short-term deal. Tahau had been linked to a move back home to Queensland in recent months, but a cruel ACL rupture in late August has made that prospect less likely for now.

“I think that players moving are part of team sport, but all I know is that Indy’s back in the building now after her surgery, and she’s attacking it really well,” Power coach Glenn Strachan told reporters last week.

“I’m confident that Indy will make the right decision for her, and I really hope that’s here at Port Adelaide.”

Skipper Justine Mules-Robinson announced her retirement last week, while the Power will also confirm multiple delistings after their final game of the year.

The Power have interest in 26-year-old Brisbane ruck Eleanor Hartill, who’s out of contract at season’s end.

The Power are on the hunt for more ruck support for Scholz, with 185cm player Hartill — who’s played 38 of a possible 40 games after joining Brisbane from West Coast in 2024 — among their potential targets.

The Power has interest in making Hartill (left) a three-club player by the end of the trade period.Source: Getty Images

SKIPPER THE FIRST PIES DOMINO TO FALL

Dual All-Australian Ruby Schleicher looms as the first of several Collingwood players to leave the club this off-season.

Magpies captain Schleicher, 28, on Tuesday informed teammates of her decision to depart the club at season’s end and return home to Western Australia.

With Fremantle all-in on Zippy Fish, Daisy Pearce’s West Coast is set to land Schleicher on a long-term deal, with the Eagles’ first selection of Pick 6 expected to be central to the trade.

And a few more Magpies dominoes are set to fall.

Star Collingwood defender Tarni White is one of the most in-demand uncontracted players, with any deal almost certain to involve a first-round selection.

While White could yet stay at Collingwood, the Western Bulldogs are considered the front-runners for her signature. Adelaide remains in the mix, while Brisbane is also seen as a potential landing spot for White, who grew up in Queensland and has family there.

Defender Lauren Butler, who’s managed just one game in 2026 due to injury, is coming to the end of her three-year Collingwood deal. Multiple clubs have reached out about Butler, who’ll soon weigh up her options after the Magpies tabled a one-year deal.

It’s understood 2021 competition best and fairest winner, Bri Davey, is also assessing her options, while Sarah Rowe, Violet Patterson and Mattea Breed remain unsigned beyond this season.

Bri Davey (left), Sarah Rowe (centre) and Violet Patterson (right) are among a handful of notable Magpies who remain unsigned beyond 2026.Source: Getty Images

While the Pies face an array of list decisions, negotiating exits for uncontracted players will be more straightforward than securing the departures of those still contracted beyond this year.

But vice-captain Jordyn Allen, who attempted to move clubs last year with two seasons remaining on her contract, is still expected to explore a trade again.

Allen, who won the Magpies’ best and fairest award in Season 7 (2022), requested a move to Brisbane last year. But if the 79-game defender finds a new home in the coming weeks, it’ll likely be a Victorian-based club.

The end of the season can’t come soon enough for Collingwood, which recorded its lowest-ever score in its 100th AFLW match on Friday night, suffering a 48-point loss to Port Adelaide.

The Pies sit 17th on the ladder with a 1-10 record. They’ve won just five games in their past three seasons.

Pies under pressure after Port defeat | 00:49

GIANT INTRIGUE AT GWS, LIONS

Dual premiership Lion Jade Ellenger has declined an offer from the Giants and is closing in on a fresh long-term contract with Brisbane.

The hard-running winger, who has played 85 of a possible 89 games since 2021 for the Lions, attracted interest from GWS and several Victorian clubs, but talks over a potential four-year extension have progressed well in recent weeks.

As reported by foxfooty.com.au last week, Craig Starcevich’s remarkable record-breaking tenure at the Lions is set to be extended, with the dual premiership coach expected to sign a new contract that’ll tie him to the club until at least the end of 2028.

Foxfooty.com.au also understands Brisbane and star midfielder Ally Anderson have agreed to terms on a new short-term deal that’ll see the Season 7 AFLW best and fairest winner’s Lions tenure extend into at least a 12th season.

Ellenger (left) and Anderson (right) are both expected to stay put at Springfield for 2027.Source: Getty Images

But the Lions, who’ll miss finals for just the second time in their AFLW history, face a delicate list management balancing act as they weigh up which established players to retain and which academy prospects to prioritise.

Along with Hartill, contracted duo Claudia Wright and Rania Crozier have attracted interest from rival clubs, along with off-contract 180cm utility Lilly Baker.

And, curiously, two-time premiership player Cathy Svarc remains out-of-contract beyond this year.

Nonetheless, the Lions are well placed to match several early bids in December after trading heavily into the 2027 draft last year. Brisbane holds its own first-round selection, Pick 19 – the compensation pick allocated to the Giants as part of their assistance package last year – and three second-round selections.

Classy and courageous midfielder Molly Ferguson, mobile key forward Harlee McIlwaine, speedy utility Aiyana Pritchard and composed on-baller Mia Geere are considered the best of the Lions’ academy crop this year, with clean small forward Zoe Petrides and ruck Ella Gibson also tied to Brisbane.

Asked if she’d allowed herself to dream of representing the Lions at AFLW level, Ferguson told foxfooty.com.au at last month’s AFLW draft combine: “Yeah, 100 per cent.

“It’s happened more over the past few months as the season’s ended and I’ve started thinking about where I could end up. I try not to think about it too much, but it definitely goes through my head.”

Lions star Hodder announces pregnancy | 00:49

The Giants, like Brisbane and Sydney, are preparing to match multiple first-round bids on academy prospects. They hold Pick 4 but could struggle to use it on an open-pool player before a bid arrives on one of their leading prospects, including exciting forward Majella Day and athletic key defender Morgan Stevens. As a result, they are open to splitting the selection before the draft.

The Giants could also secure an early selection for All-Australian defender Cambridge McCormick if she requests a trade.

McCormick will consider a move to Carlton post-season, 12 months after her bid to join the club fell through while she was contracted to the Giants. But complicating a potential Blues deal is the fact Carlton currently doesn’t hold a first-round pick – it sent its 2026 first-rounder to North Melbourne last year – in a draft where it has a father-daughter prospect in Sophia Green, who tested superbly at the AFLW draft combine.

Plus competition for McCormick’s signature is expected to be stronger this time around.

Hawthorn not only has interest in McCormick, it’s also in a better position to negotiate with the Giants, considering it holds two first-round picks, three in the second round (including one tied to the Giants) and two third-rounders. Melbourne has also been monitoring McCormick’s situation.

The Hawks could lose back-up ruck Jess Vukic, who’s contracted for 2027 but will explore a move to another Victorian-based club next month.

PICK 1 CURVEBALL?

Most clubs this year have Bailee Martin as the best player in the draft class.

But whether the dynamic goalkicker is ultimately taken at Pick 1 remains unclear, with athletic WA ruck Cara Dziegielewski also in contention for the top selection.

Dziegielewski – whose Polish surname is pronounced “jingle-esky” – was named WA’s best player in all four of its Under 18 national championship games this year to take out her state’s MVP award. She was also named an All-Australian for a third straight year, with back-to-back honours at Under 18s level after winning selection at Under 16s level in 2024.

As well as being competitive in the air and slick below her knees for a player of her size (182cm), Dziegielewski has outstanding aerobic capacity with an ability to play as a ‘fourth midfielder’. She was a 400m and 800m runner as a junior before settling on high jump as her pet event, leading to an Under 16 state championship gold medal in 2024, as well as bronze medals at national level in 2024 and 2025. Dziegielewski recorded four top-10 finishes across five combine tests, including the best running vertical jump result (75cm).

St Kilda, as it stands, holds Pick 1 in the draft – and industry sources spoken to by foxfooty.com.au in the past week believe Dziegielewski would be in the Saints’ mix, especially if they can’t pick up a ruck during the trade period.

Before it emerged Fremantle and West Coast could lose early first-round picks as part of the expected Fish and Schleicher trades, Dziegielewski said she was mentally preparing for an interstate move.

It looks to be a two-horse race for this year’s No.1 pick, between Victoria’s Bailee Martin (left) and Western Australian young gun Cara Dziegielewski (right).Source: Getty Images

“I’m pretty independent as it is, having FIFO parents,” Dziegielewski told foxfooty.com.au at last month’s draft combine.

“I’m 18, so I go to uni and have my own license and have my own life.

“It would be a huge hit, but I think starting a new life away from your parents and just living on your own or with teammates or would be incredible.”

But while Dziegielewski is firmly in the conversation, Martin’s record of 82 goals across the past three Talent League seasons for the Oakleigh Chargers makes her difficult to overlook.

A powerful, competitive and hard-working forward and natural goalkicking machine, Martin kicked 12 majors from three carnival games for Vic Metro, including a seven-goal haul against Vic Country in Dandenong. She kicked the same number of goals against the same opposition at RSEA Park 12 months earlier … as a 16-year-old.

Martin, who models her game on Carlton young gun Poppy Scholz, closely follows both the AFL and AFLW competitions – although she insists she hasn’t become obsessed with following the bottom end of the AFLW ladder this year.

Speaking to foxfooty.com.au at the AFLW draft combine, Martin said it was humbling to be talked up as the best player in the pool.

“I used that as a bit of fuel like when I was playing, to go out there and push to be my best,” Martin told foxfooty.com.au last month.

“It’s definitely a privilege to get talked about like that. It’s something I don’t really work towards – and I would love to happen – but I’d be happy with anything.”

Asked if she’d dreamt of her name being read out at Pick 1 in December, Martin said: “Every now and then, but I try not to think about it too much and just let whatever happens play out. But it’s definitely a thought in the back of the mind.”