The tension was palpable on the final day of the 2020 AFL Trade Period, with one of the games biggest names unsure of where his footballing future lay with the clock ticking and a deal not completed.
Jeremy Cameron had expressed his desire to return to Victoria and join Geelong, after spending the opening nine years of his AFL career with the GWS Giants.
But with the sand in the hourglass running out, a deal was struck in the dying seconds in a historic trade, which saw a trio of first round draft picks sent to GWS in exchange for the star forward.
Cameron sat down with Cats Media ahead of the 2024 Continental Tyres AFL Trade Period, talking through the nerve wracking process that ultimately saw him become a Geelong player.
"That whole week in the lead up to when the trade was getting done was an interesting one," Cameron said.
"Telling the Giants players that I was looking to get out of there, the guys that I had played with for 10 years was pretty tough.
"Then it boiled down to the last day, which was a stressful day. I remember going out for dinner with my partner and getting away from it all, trying not to think about it.
"With half an hour to go I was going back and forth with my manager and Andrew Mackie, trying to see if this was going to happen.
"Luckily enough it did, it almost felt like it was after the trade period had actually finished but it wasn't and it got done. I was quite happy when it was all over to be honest."
Looking to make an immediate impact at his new Club, it was not all smooth sailing for Cameron in 2021 with niggling hamstring injuries limiting the star forward to 15 games for the year.
But a strong preseason leading into 2022 saw the four time All-Australian hit peak form, booting 65 goals for the season to spearhead the Cats in a Premiership season.
Cameron said there was some tense moments early in his stint with Geelong, but he was able to quickly put that period behind him.
"The first thing you want to do is to prove that you are worth it," Cameron told Cats Media.
"The Club gave up a fair bit to get me here and to get the deal done, so I just wanted to put my best foot forward.
"I was training quite hard but my body wasn't holding up, I am sure there was a few nervous times through the club and supporter base.
"I got down here but I hurt my hamstring three times that season unfortunately, missing a little bit of football.
"I was able to play Finals and then from there, was able to take a deep breath, have a really good preseason and I haven't done that since."
In four seasons at Geelong, Cameron has built an incredible resume that includes two All-Australian selections (2022, 2024), a Carji Greeves Medal (2022) and of course that memorable Premiership in 2022.
