CARLTON Football Club has secured high-flying forward Mitch McGovern in the 2018 trade period after completing a three-way trade with Adelaide and Sydney.

In addition to McGovern, the deal will see the Blues receive a future third-round pick from the Crows, while Carlton will send its pre-listed state-league player Shane McAdam to Adelaide, along with its future fifth-round pick.

Adelaide also secures Sydney’s first-round pick (No.13) and in return, the Swans acquire pick Nos.26 and 28 from Carlton, as well as pick No.40 from the Crows.

Recruited by Adelaide with pick No.43 in the 2014 national draft, McGovern has played 48 games and kicked 67 goals since making his debut in Round 1, 2016 against North Melbourne.

Once the enemy now an asset, the 190cm forward booted five goals against the Blues this year in Round 7 at Adelaide Oval, while also collecting 16 disposals and taking nine marks.

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#HelloGovernor! We’re delighted to welcome @mitchmcgovern to Carlton! Full details on the app.

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With one of the safest pairs of hands in the league, McGovern is known for his contested marking, as well as his ability to hit the scoreboard. In Round 19 last year against Collingwood, the Western Australian took a spectacular pack mark in the dying seconds of the match to secure a set shot after the siren. Keeping a cool head, McGovern slotted the goal to even the scores and record his only draw across three seasons.   

With McGovern nominating Carlton as his preferred club, GM of List Management and Strategy Stephen Silvagni said he was pleased with the outcome of the deal.

“As a highly regarded player who was still under contract at the Crows, we were fully aware it was going to take a lot of negotiating to get the deal done, so we’re delighted to come away with this result and appreciate Adelaide and Sydney’s cooperation throughout the process,” Silvagni said.

“Mitch has been a terrific player for the Crows over the past three seasons and we believe he’ll strengthen our forward line and add another layer of depth to our emerging list as we head into the next phase of our development.

“He’s got a great pair of hands and we’ve all seen how accurate he is in front of goal, so we’re excited to see what he can produce alongside our young forwards that we’ve drafted in Charlie Curnow, Harry McKay and Tom De Koning.

“After going to the draft for the past three years, we’ve been vocal about our need to start recruiting players within that 23- to 27-year age bracket and Mitch fits that profile. At 23 years old, he’s got a lot of footy in front of him and we hope he’ll be a long-term player for our club."

The AFL trade period ends at 8:30pm on Wednesday 17 October (for exchange of players).