DUSTIN Martin appears almost certain to remain at Richmond next year.

The Herald Sun is reporting that the all-Australian midfielder’s management will meet with Tigers officials on Friday to thrash out a new long-term deal.

It had previously been suggested that Adelaide, St Kilda and Essendon were all interested in luring the 153-gamer from Punt Road. But the Crows and Saints have since ruled themselves out.

St Kilda great Nathan Burke told Fox Sports News earlier in the year that the club had been preparing to make a play for a ‘big fish’ for several seasons. Nat Fyfe was touted at the time, but it appears Martin is not on the Saints radar.

Finals Week 1

Martin is under contract at Richmond until the end of 2017 when he becomes a free agent and can walk to the club of his choice.

It was reported that he was paid between $600,000 and $650,000 this season. A new contract at Richmond would see a pay increase as the Tigers look to lock in their star on-baller.

Essendon has been linked to Martin several times in recent years, however there is no indication the 25-year-old wants out of Richmond.

LISTEN TO THE LATEST FOX FOOTY PODCAST BELOW, OR TAP HERE TO SUBSCRIBE IN iTunes

HILL SET FOR FREO MEDICAL

HAWTHORN winger Brad Hill is set to have a medical with the Fremantle Dockers after flying into Perth on Tuesday night.

AFL Media is reporting that the 23-year-old confirmed his request to be traded to Hawks coach Alastair Clarkson on Monday with the main reason his desire to play alongside his brother Stephen.

However a trade is no certainty, with Hill under contract for 2017 and Fremantle featuring prominently in an array of player movement discussions.

Michael Barlow, Hayden Ballantyne and Chris Mayne could all leave the club, with the latter’s manager suggesting on Tuesday that he will almost certainly join a Victorian team.

Hill has played 95 games and won three flags for Hawthorn since debuting in 2012.

RICHMOND BOARD CHALLENGE STILL OPEN

DR Martin Hiscock, the man who led the ‘Focus on Footy’ group as it aimed to overthrow the current Richmond board, has not ruled out a future challenge.

The primary issue at the moment is timing, according to Hiscock, who also confirmed ‘Focus on Footy’ did not have a full ticket. In other words, even if they wanted to displace the full board, they did not have the capacity to do so.

“We didn’t have a full ticket and you need a full ticket to replace the board,” Hiscock told SEN.

“It’s not as easy as you think ... We have the signatures to trigger an EGM, which people have scoffed at. That’s a feat in itself. There is a massive amount of people that are very unhappy with the way the Richmond Football Club is going. The media is very one-sided.”

Hiscock also revealed his group ‘thought long and hard’ about Damien Hardwick’s future, before publicly declaring he would coach in 2017.

“We couldn’t come out and say ‘we’re sacking Damien’,” he said.

“You come out and sack him, then you are up for almost $2 million. That’s roughly how much Richmond has in the bank. People will shoot you down. We thought long and hard about that.

We thought leave him there until next year. He is a good person.”

COONEY CONFIDENT ON JOBE

RETIRED Western Bulldogs and Essendon great Adam Cooney believes Jobe Watson will play on in 2017.

Watson is yet to commit for next season as doubts grow over whether the veteran will ever don the red and black again.

But Cooney, who played alongside Watson in 2015, is confident the 200-gamer will make the affirmative call sooner rather than later.

“All signs are pointing to yes in my opinion,” Cooney told Fox Sports News Rush Hour.

“The way he’s kept himself in great nick, he looks really fit. If he wasn’t going to come back and play footy, he certainly wouldn’t have kept himself in shape.

“It’s great to see that he came back from overseas and joined straight in with the other players at training. So it’s good signs for the Bombers that Jobe will play next year.”

Cooney, who wont the 2008 Brownlow Medal, also said it would be ‘sad’ if Watson lost his 2012 award due to the Essendon supplements saga.

IS FINALS EXPERIENCE A MYTH?

SYDNEY Swans premiership captain Barry Hall is questioning himself on whether finals experience matters or not.

Before GWS’ upset win over the Swans, the retired full-forward believed that experience in September was critical. But now he is not so sure.

“I’ve question marked the myth of finals experience now,” Hall told AFL Tonight.

“GWS had 16 players who had never played a final las week and they were just fearless. They were young, took the game on and weren’t worried about it.

“Maybe it is a myth.”

Hall also noted that the stories of GWS and the Western Bulldogs are great for football, regardless of who wins on Saturday evening at Spotless Stadium.

“It’s a great story whoever gets in,” he said.

“It’s been a really good story about what Luke Beveridge has created and there is some real substance to what they are doing.”