Geelong CEO Brian Cook has revealed the extent of the "messy" negotiations that were in place with Greater Western Sydney to land star forward Jeremy Cameron in the trade period.
After requesting a move to Kardinia Park and the Giants soon matching Geelong's mega offer for the 2019 Coleman medallist, the two parties took to the trade window to sought a deal.
After much deliberation, a trade was agreed upon with just seconds remaining on the final day of the trade period.
Speaking on SEN's Dwayne's World, Cook said the negotiations to land the deal were intense.
“The best word to describe it was messy, really messy,” Cook said.
“We had seven emails ready to go and we only had to press one so to speak, but there were some renegotiations in the last 90 seconds around the deal.
“I can’t imagine how Jeremy was feeling. It was a really tight, tough and challenging last two minutes to say the least.”
Geelong traded three first round selections to the 2020 AFL Draft and a future fourth-round selection in exchange for Cameron and two future second-round picks.
Cook also spoke on Jack Steven's decision to retire whilst still having one year left on his contract with the Cats.
“That was a joint decision,” he said.
“In the hubs you see firsthand how people live and what their challenges are and in a really human and caring way, it was obvious to us that Jack was struggling to meet the full commitments of high-performance AFL athletes and what was required.
“We met with both him and his player manager and we agreed that Jack should look at other things in life, particularly around his physical and mental health.
“It happened at the end of the hub after the Grand Final and all parties admitted and accepted that there was probably a better alternative than another year of AFL football for Jack.”