Collingwood forward Travis Cloke feels he had no choice but to leave the Magpies and believes he would be a good fit at the Western Bulldogs.
Cloke on Thursday night told the Nine Network's The Footy Show he had spoken to coach Nathan Buckley earlier this week and it was clear to him it wasn't going to work out well for either party if he played out the last season of his contract in 2017.
He described his trade request as a hard decision to make but a good one for all involved.
"I am a pretty loyal person and that was probably the hardest thing to remove myself from that 2017 contract," Cloke said.
"Obviously I had conversations with Bucks, and I guess it just wasn't going to work out for the both of us.
"I didn't want to be playing VFL football and they can't guarantee you're going to be playing senior footy all the time, depending on form, the body, what the club is doing and where it's going."
The 29-year-old revealed his management team has been in contact with the Dogs, feeling he could improve Luke Beveridge's side, and hoped a deal could be worked out.
"I've enjoyed watching their footy over the last two years to see how Bevo has changed their whole football club around," he said.
"I actually haven't spoken with Bevo as such but I'm sure, in the coming weeks, I will.
"Obviously, they've got their own finals campaign at the moment and want to do very well.
"So, I'll watch them as a keen supporter, as most will.
"If that's where I do end up, they play a very exciting brand of footy and I feel like I could improve their side but also they can get the best out of me and we can work something out there."
Cloke has played 246 AFL games but only 13 of them came this year and he admitted the third time Buckley dropped him from the senior team hurt a lot and was a factor in his decision to leave.
