Since the turn of the century, the AFL trade period has gathered momentum by the year, with the annual exchange market delivering a handful of hits and misses for every club in the competition.

While St Kilda hasn’t always got things right at this time of the year, the club has pulled off a handful of recruiting coups that would still leave recruiters and list managers grinning now. saints.com.au has identified six of St Kilda’s best trades since 2000.

2000

The deal: St Kilda received Fraser Gehrig from West Coast in exchange for pick No. 18 (Daniel Kerr) and David Sierakowski

After beginning his career at West Coast on a wing and then moving forward where he earned All-Australian selection in a forward pocket in 1997, Fraser Gehrig was included in a genuine win-win trade for both clubs involved at the end of 2000. The Eagles received a future champion midfielder in Daniel Kerr, with David Sierakowski included as the steak knives in the deal, while St Kilda acquired a big bustling power forward that would go on to win two Coleman Medals and lead the Saints goal kicking for five consecutive seasons between 2003 and 2007.

2001

The deal: Sydney received Barry Hall from St Kilda in exchange for pick No. 13 (Nick Dal Santo), No. 17 (on-traded for Heath Black) and No. 45 (on-traded for Trent Knoble)

In a similar vein to the Gehrig trade, both Sydney and St Kilda won the Barry Hall deal. The Swans received a future premiership captain, three-time All-Australian and seven-time leading goal kicker. While the Saints were well compensated, acquiring a future three-time All-Australian of their own in Nick Dal Santo with selection No. 13, as well as pick No. 17 and a sweetener in the deal with pick No. 45. The Saints ended up on-trading their other first round pick (17) to Fremantle for midfielder Heath Black, who would go on to play 54 games in three seasons at the Saints before returning to the Dockers. Hindsight is a wonderful thing in football, particularly in the recruiting space. Had the Saints held on to that pick they could have secured James Kelly who was plucked by the Cats, where he went on to win three premierships.

2003

The deal: St Kilda received Jason Gram from Brisbane in exchange for pick No. 23 (Matthew Moody)

Timing is everything in life and when you land at a club amid a premiership dynasty, opportunities are always going to be scarce. That was the case for Jason Gram, who after two games in two seasons at Brisbane looked for greener pastures elsewhere. He was lured back to Victoria at the end of 2013 while the Lions where still celebrating their three peat. Gram didn’t come cheap, but given Brisbane spent pick No. 23 on Matthew Moody, who would play 34 in five years at the Gabba, the Saints made a fine investment in Gram. Gram’s run and carry would prove to be an invaluable commodity during the Saints’ run to successive Grand Finals in 2009 and 2010. In the 2009 decider, Gram polled the same amount of votes as Paul Chapman, but the Cats’ midfielder was awarded the Norm Smith Medal on a countback. Gram’s career came to an abrupt end in 2012, but by then he had produced nine years and 154 games of service in red, white and black.

Buy, sell, swap: St Kilda in the free agency era

2007

The deal: St Kilda received Adam Schneider and Sean Dempster from Sydney in exchange for pick No. 26 (Brett Meredith)

Sometimes you win some, and sometimes you absolute rob some people. This was one of those occasions. On the back of successive trips to the big dance, the Swans needed to offload some of their talent to alleviate a salary cap that was bursting at its seams. Enter St Kilda. The Saints were interested in highly skilled premiership small forward Adam Schneider and took Sean Dempster as a sweetener on top. And what a sweetener that has turned out to be. While the Swans didn’t convert pick No. 26, Schneider ended up playing 130 games for the Saints, forming a destructive alliance with fellow goal sneak Stephen Milne, while also playing at the feet of Nick Riewoldt and Justin Koschitzke. Dempster, a premiership player himself at Sydney, has since played 158 games and been a paragon of consistency in St Kilda’s back six. All-Australian in 2012 and with four podium finishes in the Trevor Barker Award, the Saints were clearly the big winners in this deal.

2008

The deal: St Kilda received Farren Ray and pick No. 48 from the Western Bulldogs in exchange for pick No. 31 (Jordan Roughead)

After five seasons at the kennel, former pick No. 4 Farren Ray landed at the Saints in a trade that involved the swapping of picks No. 31 and No. 48. While the Dogs pick has reaped a premiership ruckman in Jordan Roughead, Ray played 123 games in red, white and black, including 10 finals and all three grand finals during the Saints run in 2009 and 2010. The popular West Australian moved to North Melbourne at the end of last season in the rookie draft before retiring at the end of this season.

2013

The deal: St Kilda received Josh Bruce from Greater Western Sydney in exchange for pick No. 48 (pass)

It’s hard to believe that Josh Bruce was recruited to St Kilda as a key defender, given his stellar performances at the opposite end of the ground across the last two years. The former Giant rose to stardom in 2015, booting 50 goals from 22 games to emerge as one of the most exciting young key forwards in the competition. With Jeremy Cameron, Jonathon Patton and Tom Boyd on the way, it’s not hard to see why Bruce didn’t get a go up forward at the Giants. Since securing a permanent berth in Alan Richardson’s best 22 last year, Bruce has kicked 88 goals in the last two seasons. To make the trade even better for the Saints, Greater Western Sydney passed on pick No. 48.

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