Collingwood forward Ash Johnson hopes to stay at the AIA Centre long term according to his manager Julian Petracca.
Johnson joined Collingwood in the 2021 mid-season draft and has since played 18 games for the club, booting 26 goals.
The exciting forward inked a contract extension last season with a trigger that will see him through until the end of the 2024 season but has reportedly attracted interest from rival clubs.
Despite that interest, Petracca said he and Collingwood football boss Graham Wright are in discussions about sorting Johnson a new multi-year deal.
“Ash was taken in the 2021 mid-season (draft),” Hemisphere Management's Petracca told AFL.com.au’s Gettable podcast.
“For us, we did his contract halfway through last year and he just did his hamstring off the bone.
“So, for us, he was out for nine to 10 weeks, so we just wanted to get some security and built in the trigger.
“But myself and Graham Wright have had some open discussions around maybe extending him beyond that for multiple years.
“I'll sit down with Ash and his partner around the bye to see what that looks like.”
Petracca believes Johnson is a player that Collingwood is keen to keep a hold of given his unique profile.
He is also confident the former Sturt forward is eager to remain with the Pies.
“I think so (he wants to stay), and the form he's shown, he plays a pivotal role in that forward line,” Petracca replied.
“He offers something different.
“He’s a bit of a mismatch, whether to play a small or tall defender (on him).
“He's got those capabilities of taking a specky and he has that x-factor and can hurt you with six to eight possessions, but he might kick a couple of goals.”
After showing that he can play second ruck on occasion earlier this season, Petracca revealed that he fielded calls from rival clubs about Johnson’s services.
“(My phone has been ringing) a little bit,” Petracca said.
“I think he's shown sort of in those first few rounds when he came in, he can play that sort of second ruck role.
“Developing that is another string to his bow, but I think forward is his predominant position.”
Johnson and Collingwood will go in search of their 11th win from their last 12 games when they face West Coast at Optus Stadium on Saturday afternoon.