IF THE Dockers' NAB AFL Trade Period finishes no better than it's started, they will at least claim one prize – the award for the most difficult club to deal with.

Just ask Brisbane, which is waiting to see if Fremantle will back down on its refusal to trade contracted midfield star Lachie Neale.

When Brisbane and Fremantle were talking, the Lions had pick No.5 on the table – a gilt-edged selection the Dockers could have used to help snare Melbourne spearhead Jesse Hogan or invest in a 2018 draft laden with top-end talent – but the Dockers counter-claimed for two first-round picks.

Melbourne put Fremantle offside when it opened the Hogan discussions by demanding picks No.5 (via Brisbane) and No.6.

However, it's understood the Demons subsequently retreated from that ambit claim and would have accepted pick No.6 and a second-round selection for Hogan.

That seemed a reasonable price.

Especially when Hogan, 23, is the power forward the Dockers have long been seeking with the same zeal as the crusade knights pursued the Holy Grail.

But the Dockers put the Demons' noses out of joint when they traded pick No.6 to Port Adelaide as part of a pick swap that netted them selections 11, 23, 30 and 49.

They then purported on Friday afternoon to pull out of the Hogan talks altogether, saying in a statement that they could not meet Melbourne's asking price.

Melbourne responded with a statement of its own, saying it now expected Hogan to return to fulfill his contract in 2019.

With five days remaining before the trade deadline expires at 8.30pm AEDT next Wednesday, we suspect both parties will at some point stop posturing and get back to the trade table.

But if one side has to give ground to reopen the talks, it should be Fremantle.

Although Melbourne is banking on securing Gold Coast full-back Steven May via the return it gets for Hogan, the Dockers have the most to lose.

Yes, trading for GWS tall Rory Lobb would help address their need for more marking power in attack – incidentally those talks are proceeding at a snail's pace too – but Hogan is the player around whom they can base their attack for the next seven or eight years.

That's why the Dockers have been circling him for so long.

And that's why it would be disastrous if they let him go when he's finally gettable just because they want a 'win' rather than a 'win-win'.

Scully and Patton the latest Giants on trade table
Greater Western Sydney knew it faced an unprecedented player exodus this Trade Period as it (a) moved to ease a significant salary cap squeeze and (b) positioned itself to re-sign stars such as Josh Kelly, Stephen Coniglio and Nick Haynes before they come out of contract at the end of 2019.

The scale of that likely exodus expanded on Friday when it emerged Tom Scully was set to be traded to Hawthorn and Jonathon Patton, according to rival clubs, had also been put on the table.

It seems unlikely Patton, who is recovering from his third knee reconstruction, will move, but Scully is all but certain to join Rory Lobb (Fremantle), Dylan Shiel (Essendon) and Will Setterfield (Carlton) in departing Spotless Stadium.

New St Kilda list manager James Gallagher told Macquarie Sports Radio the Saints had tried to enter the Scully race, but his manager, Mark Kleiman of TLA Australia, had told them he would only consider clubs who were closer to contending for premierships.

It's understood other clubs tried to contact Kleiman on Friday but their calls went unanswered, while Essendon, which had been linked with Scully for much of this year, bowed out of the running when Shiel committed to moving to Tullamarine.

Some also hold concerns over the ankle Scully broke in the Giants' round two win over Collingwood at the MCG, an injury serious enough to sideline him for the rest of 2018.

Those concerns dissuaded some Victorian clubs from pursuing Scully and should ensure Hawthorn won't have to part with anything more than its second-round pick, No.35 overall, to secure the midfielder, who was contracted at GWS for another three years.

However, the Hawks no doubt will back their renowned medical team to get one of the game's hardest-running midfielders back to full fitness.

If they can do that, Hawthorn will have snared this year's biggest trade bargain.

Burton's USA D-Day
Port Adelaide will put Ryan Burton through a weekend medical test in Las Vegas before committing to a formal offer for the Hawks playmaker.

Thrown on the trade table by Hawthorn as part of its offer to the Power for Chad Wingard, Burton must now consider the opportunity to move home to South Australia before the weekend is over.

The 21-year-old is understood to have been shocked by the call he received this week that he would be put up as part of the transaction for Wingard, however, he can opt to remain at the Hawks should he wish.

Should Burton depart, the Hawks' half-back options will include James Sicily, Blake Hardwick, Grant Birchall and potentially their Gold Coast trade target Jack Scrimshaw.

The Power have identified Burton as the key to releasing Wingard, informing him he would be used in a variety of roles if he moves to Alberton.

He remains contracted at the Hawks until the end of 2020 after re-signing a three-year deal in July last year.

On Friday, the Power ruled out making moves for any other Hawks, including Kieran Lovell and Tim O'Brien.

Clock ticking for Langdon
Collingwood Grand Final star Tom Langdon continues to mull over long-term offers from Sydney and Fremantle.

Langdon toured the Swans' facilities this week and is understood to have done the same at the Dockers, with both clubs offering longer contracts than what the Pies currently have on the table.

Holidaying with brother Ed in Africa, the 24-year-old defender is set to decide on his destination of choice on Saturday or Sunday.

Langdon only received a formal extension offer from the Pies on the Tuesday after the Grand Final, with the Pies having earlier prioritised big-money plays for Gold Coast's Tom Lynch and Steven May, while also keeping a close eye on Dayne Beams' flagged interest to return.

After transacting for Dan Hannebery on Friday, the Swans hold picks 26, 33, 38, 39 and 40, with a combination slated for Langdon and the others required to match a bid for Academy prospect Nick Blakey.

The Dockers, who are also attempting to do a deal for Greater Western Sydney ruckman Rory Lobb, have a draft hand that consists of picks 11, 23, 30 and 49.