Richmond, Collingwood, Essendon and Geelong are all interested in GWS star Tim Taranto, reports Sam McClure.
Taranto’s two-year contract with the Giants expires at the end of the season.
The 24-year-old has yet to decide on his future beyond this year, as a slew of Victorian clubs surround the out-of-contract midfielder.
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“It’s always at this time of year where a player emerges as someone who could have a big domino effect in the rest of the trading period,” McClure told Sportsday.
“Tim Taranto will be this year.
“They have proposed an extension, but he currently has less money.
“He is only 24 years old, so he is not a free agent.
“The clubs that have him are the big clubs: we’re talking about Richmond, Collingwood, Essendon, Geelong. Maybe even St Kilda, although I think they would be down. A couple of years ago they became interested in him.
“Tim Taranto, I think, will end up being what is squeezed out and there will be a lot of suitors as I just told you.”
McClure added: “I would say right now, Richmond would be the favorite (to sign Taranto).”
Taranto recently said contract talks with the Giants had stalled while he was recovering from a back injury.
The second pick in the 2016 draft insists he is “very happy” in Sydney.
“We stopped the conversations when I hurt my back and, to be honest, for the last six weeks, that’s all I’ve been doing and I’m still trying to get back in shape,” Taranto told reporters earlier of this month.
“So I haven’t talked about it too much, but we’re in a good place. I’m very happy, I still love Sydney. Nothing has changed.
“We’re just working on a few things now that I’m back playing football, but the first goal is to get back to my best football.”
AFL Media reporter Cal Twomey told SEN Breakfast in late March that the clubs “will go very hard” for Taranto.
Taranto, the best and fairest winner with the Giants in 2019, has an average of 26.4 discards and four discards per game this season.