Richmond premiership hero Liam Baker confirms desire to move home to Western Australia

Richmond have confirmed they will seek a “fair and equitable trade” after Liam Baker shared his intention to head home to play in Western Australia, as first revealed by 7NEWS Melbourne’s Mitch Cleary.

Baker is yet to nominate either Fremantle or West Coast as his AFL club of choice.

The 26-year-old is out of contract at the Tigers, but is not a free agent, meaning he will need to be traded to get to the destination of his desire.

“Liam has been a wonderful player for us and is someone we value very highly,” Richmond list boss Blair Hartley said.

“While we are disappointed that he has requested a trade away from the Club, we respect the reasons for his decision.

“We will work closely with potential suitors for Liam to ensure that we are fairly compensated.”

Tigers coach Adem Yze has been open and honest when asked about Baker’s future, among other names set to leave the Tigers, and it is unlikely the club will make a trade difficult.

But should a deadlock be reached between Richmond and either the Dockers or Eagles, the two-time premiership player would need to be walked through to the pre-season draft to get home.

Speaking earlier this month, Yze said the club would not stand in Baker’s way, or that of Jack Graham, who is also out of contract.

“They’re out of contract and they’re at a point in their careers where they get to make that decision,” he said on August 15.

“All we can do is provide an environment that they want to be here, but they’re great stalwarts of our footy club and if they decide to go elsewhere then that’s just the environment that we’re living in.”

The Tigers are facing a player exodus with premiership stars Shai Bolton and Daniel Rioli also requesting moves elsewhere, while even injured key forward Tom Lynch’s name has been thrown up as possible trade fodder.

Richmond confirmed on Wednesday that Bolton and Rioli had officially informed them of their desire to be traded.

The Tigers have been aware of Bolton’s desire to return to Western Australia to be closer to his family ahead of the birth of his second child.

Rioli is in the sights of Suns coach Damien Hardwick, who left Richmond midway through 2023 after guiding the club to three premierships.

“Both Daniel and Shai have informed us of their requests for a trade during our end-of-season review process,” Richmond football manager Blair Hartley said in a statement.

“Whilst we are disappointed, we have been in constant dialogue with both the players and their management throughout the course of the season.

“Out of respect to both players and their wishes, at the right time — we will open conversations with their clubs of choice.

“We will listen to what the clubs have to offer and determine whether or not we believe it is a viable trade and in the best interests of the Richmond Football Club.”

Hardwick said of Rioli that he had been “a wonderful player” for Richmond for a long period of time.

While not commenting specifically about Rioli, he said Gold Coast was always “looking to improve” their playing list and “would love to have” any good player.

Suns forward Jack Lukosius kicked two goals against Richmond as he weighs up a potential move back to his home state of South Australia during the off-season.

Hardwick said he hoped the contracted Lukosius would stay at the Suns, turning down lucrative offers from Adelaide and Port Adelaide.

“Me and Jack have got a really good relationship,” he said.

“I don’t think I’ve got the best out of Jack this year, and he’s accepted he’s got some areas of his game that he can improve.

“He’s contracted for a number of years, so as far as I’m concerned, I’ve got to get the best out of him in Suns colours because he’s a very, very good player.”

- With AAP