Hawthorn star recruit Jaeger O'Meara has his sights set on a big preseason as he looks to reignite his injury-interrupted AFL career.
The Hawks on Thursday finally broke through in their bid to secure O'Meara from Gold Coast, pulling off the biggest deal of the trade period with just minutes to spare before the 2pm deadline.
O'Meara will depart the Suns in exchange for Hawthorn's No.10 pick in this year's draft, as well as a second-round selection in next year's draft.
The 22-year-old was the biggest target in this year's trade period, despite being sidelined for the past two years with persistent knee problems, and says he's desperate to get back on the field.
"The knee's feeling really good and I'm looking forward to a big preseason," O'Meara told reporters on Thursday.
"I'm just looking forward to coming in, meeting my new teammates and working hard and gaining their respect as soon as possible."
The Suns and Hawks had been locked in a bitter dispute over O'Meara's value, with Gold Coast chairman Tony Cochrane angrily rejecting the Hawks' previous offer of picks 10 and 48.
They threatened to send O'Meara to the draft if the Hawks couldn't offer a suitable deal but relented with just 10 minutes remaining before the deadline.
A relieved O'Meara said he had been in contact with his manager throughout the day trying to get an update on the talks.
"I called him about 17 times this morning trying to get an idea of what was happening and then I was ecstatic when it officially got done," he said.
Hawthorn list manager Graham Wright said he was rapt to welcome O'Meara to the club,
"At only 22 years of age he is an exciting prospect and has many years of good football ahead of him," Wright said.
"He has undergone some recent injury troubles, however we are confident that our medical and conditioning staff can work with Jaeger to see him produce his best football."
Gold Coast football boss Marcus Ashcroft said the Suns were happy with the trade, which means they will take picks 4, 6, 8 and 10 into next month's draft.
"We had been clear with our expectations to Hawthorn throughout the trade period and to their credit they worked incredibly hard, especially late in the piece, to satisfy our needs," he said.
