Jaeger O’Meara is reportedly on the radar of GWS who have initiated talks with the Hawthorn midfielder.
It is understood that the Giants are keen on the former Gold Coast Sun as they prepare for life after Tim Taranto and perhaps even Jacob Hopper, while youngster Tanner Bruhn has also left.
The 28-year-old remains contracted to the Hawks for 2023 and it is unclear if the Hawks would trade him out.
AFL Trade Radio’s Kane Cornes and Matthew Lloyd both believe the O’Meara move to the Giants makes sense for the individual but only if he was offered a lengthy deal to uproot and move again.
Cornes, however, did reference the fact that Sam Mitchell’s Hawks could possibly lose Jack Gunston and Tom Mitchell on top of O’Meara if he were to depart, taking away some valuable experience.
“There’s two aspects - what it means for GWS, but also the fallout for Hawthorn if they were to lose Gunston, O’Meara and also Mitchell,” Cornes said.
Lloyd replied, indicating that there would be only be one reason he would leave if in O’Meara’s position and that would be for a significant contract.
“O’Meara has been good but they’d probably be happy to have his money out,” he said.
“Sam (Mitchell) seems pretty comfortable in his own skin and even if they go backwards a little bit, it’s about building towards the future for them.
“But if they lost Gunston as well that would be extremely young. If you lose three senior players that could be toppling over too far.
“If you’re O’Meara, do you want to move to Sydney to go to another bottom four club, which they (the Giants) potentially could be next year, unless you extend your contract by an extra two or three years.
“That’s the only reason I’d go.”
Cornes agrees, saying any potential deal for O’Meara would have to be suitable for the Western Australian to head back interstate having already shifted from Perth to the Gold Coast and then to Melbourne.
“That would be the motivating factor,” he added.
“The writing’s on the wall for Mitchell and O’Meara and all of those Hawthorn players that are above the age of 27-28 with the direction they are going in.
“If O’Meara goes give me a three or four-year deal, it’s good super annuation for me, I can help mentor some of the young midfielders at the Giants and be a part of a team where I’m in the best midfield group where I’d probably be squeezed out at Hawthorn.
“He’s 28, he’s contracted for 2023 at Hawthorn. We’ll wait and see what he would be worth in terms of a draft pick and Hawthorn might be enticed by that and they will probably be the youngest team in the competition if those three are to leave.”
O’Meara played 21 games for the Hawks in 2022 and averaged 20 disposals to finish seventh in the best and fairest.
He has been at the club for six seasons having crossed from the Suns in 2016 after four years on the Gold Coast, two of which were curtailed by injury.