Port Adelaide great Kane Cornes says his former club are cautiously optimistic in luring Melbourne forward Kysaiah Pickett to Alberton for the 2024 season and beyond.
It was revealed last September that Port Adelaide were exploring the possibility of trading for Pickett while SEN’s Michelangelo Rucci also reported that the Power were running a campaign to secure the Demon.
While Pickett ultimately stayed at Melbourne to see out his contract until the end of 2023, Cornes expects the Power to ramp up their pursuit at the end of the season as club powerbrokers continue to work on a potential offer.
“Whilst Pickett has opted to see out his contract with the Dees, he has paused any talk with the club most likely until the deal expires in October,” Cornes said on SEN Sportsday.
“Pickett is said to love Melbourne the club but not Melbourne the destination.
“There is a Port Adelaide connection, his uncle Byron won the 2004 Norm Smith Medal for the club, Pickett’s manager Peter Rhode was formerly Port Adelaide’s long-term GM of football and Pickett was drafted from Woodville-West Torrens in the SANFL.
“The powers at be have been working on him for over 12 months and they are cautiously optimistic he’s going to choose them.”
Cornes also pointed to other reports linking Pickett to Perth clubs and with plenty of potential suitors, he believes the young star would be a huge loss for Melbourne who recently were forced to trade Luke Jackson.
“Other reporters have suggested Pickett is likelier to end up in Perth, where he was born,” Cornes said.
“He is only entering his fourth AFL season, yet he’s kicked 40 plus goals in the last two years.
“His move into the midfield this year makes him even more deadly, what a loss he’d be for Melbourne.”
Pickett has kicked 88 goals from 62 games since being taken with pick No. 12 in the 2019 National Draft.
While he’ll come out of contract at the end of the season, any club would be forced to trade for or walk Pickett to the pre-season draft Pickett given his non-free agent status.
