1. Gary Ablett: Geelong to Gold Coast (2010)

It became a circus and a soap opera at the end, but when virtually every TV outlet in the country runs the media conference live, how can anything claim to have been bigger.

2. Ron Barassi: Melbourne to Carlton (1965)

Barassi was the biggest name in football and at the time, Melbourne the biggest club. But after six premierships, he was getting to the stage of his career where he was going to coach somewhere and Norm Smith was still entrenched at Melbourne. They say that schoolchildren all over Melbourne cried themselves to sleep that night. His move might also explain why Melbourne is not the biggest club in the league any more.

3. Chris Judd: West Coast to Carlton (2008)

A Sandringham boy who went to Caulfield Grammar, Judd was always going to come home at some stage, but this played itself out over just a few weeks rather than an entire year. What made this big was the clubs hawking themselves to Judd, not the other way around.

4. The 10 year rule (1973)

Free agency lasted only a few months back at the end of 1972 but long enough for North Melbourne to grab 10-year veterans Barry Davis (Essendon), Doug Wade (Geelong) and John Rantall (South Melbourne), all of who helped the club go from one win in 1972 to a flag in 1975. Carl Ditterich used the same rule to move from St Kilda to Melbourne.

5. Ian Stewart: St Kilda to Richmond (1971)

The dual Brownlow medalist needed a change, so joined the Punt Road powerhouse in what was a massive deal at the time. Bill Barrott was swapped for Stewart but played just two games for the Saints before moving on to Carlton. Meanwhile, Stewart won a third Brownlow in his first season as a Tiger.

6. Peter Moore & Kelvin Templeton to Melbourne (1983)

The respective 1979 and 1980 Brownlow winners were lured from Collingwood and Footscray on huge deals to play under Ron Barassi at Melbourne. Moore won a second Brownlow in 1984, but Templeton was a bust, largely due to injury.

7. Geoff Raines and David Cloke: Richmond to Collingwood (1983)

Two of Richmond's very best packed themselves off to Victoria Park in what marked the start of a bidding war between the two clubs that lasted for a while and nearly sent both clubs to the wall.

8. Gavin Wanganeen: Essendon to Port Adelaide (1997)

The prodigal son of Alberton found it hard to resist returning home to become the fledgling club's first AFL captain. Kevin Sheedy and the Bombers bleated about it for years.

9. Brad Hardie: Footscray to Brisbane (1987)

Two years after a Brownlow, Hardie moved to Queensland as Brisbane's first marquee signing after a falling out with Bulldogs coach Mick Malthouse.

10. Wayne Carey: North Melbourne to Adelaide (2003)

Following a year out of the game after his scandalous departure from the Kangaroos, Carey joined the Crows to finish his career.