The will-they, won't-they drama between Bryce Gibbs and Adelaide has taken another twist, with talks between the Crows and Carlton apparently collapsing ahead of the AFL trade deadline.
A deal to send the Blues' midfielder to Adelaide appeared to be imminent when Crows officials, including list manager Justin Reid, arrived at AFL House late on Wednesday afternoon.
But the Crows departed without comment soon after, and it quickly became clear a trade would not be struck just yet.
Multiple reports suggested the Crows had agreed to part with two first-round draft selections, with the stall in negotiations related to a future pick swap.
Both parties had claimed to have moved on from a potential trade involving Gibbs but Wednesday's flurry of activity suggests he is more likely than not to wind up at West Lakes.
Adelaide's failed pursuit of Gibbs last year went down to the wire, and it appears negotiations between the Crows and Blues will again run close to Thursday's 2pm deadline.
Should Gibbs be dealt to Carlton, Adelaide could be more willing to grant forward Charlie Cameron his desired trade to Brisbane.
The Gibbs' trade is one of several key deals set to be resolved on the final day.
Gary Ablett appears certain to be traded from Gold Coast to Geelong, with the Cats set to give up draft picks rather than a player.
Cats midfielder Darcy Lang had been weighing up a move to the Suns but has reportedly chosen Carlton instead.
Ablett's manager Liam Pickering met officials from Geelong and Gold Coast on Wednesday afternoon, with all parties confident a deal would be struck.
"We'd love Gary to be back at Geelong and both parties are trying to work through that," Geelong football boss Simon Lloyd told reporters.
Essendon and the Western Bulldogs continued to haggle over the value of estranged Bulldogs forward Jake Stringer.
Stringer's management had indicated there was no chance of him remaining at Whitten Oval, although there appeared to be no significant movement on Wednesday in negotiations.
Fremantle's Lachie Weller remains set on moving to Gold Coast and has warned he will walk out on the Dockers when his contract expires in 12 months if he is not granted a trade.
The 11th deal of the trade period landed on Wednesday morning with Melbourne receiving Fremantle midfielder Harley Balic in exchange for a fourth-round draft pick.
Adelaide agreed to send Harrison Wigg, yet to make his senior debut, to Gold Coast in exchange for an upgraded third-round draft selection.
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