New Western Bulldogs utility Justin Sherman admits he had lost his spark at Brisbane, prompting the desire for an AFL trade.

After several days of haggling and strong interest from Sydney, Sherman was traded to the Bulldogs in return for the Jarrod Harbrow compensation pick.

"When you lose your enjoyment and enthusiasm for something you love then it's time to move on and go somewhere else," Sherman told the AFL website.

"Hopefully that will rejuvenate my career and mean it can end the way I want it to."

Sherman debuted in 2005 and played 114 games for the Lions, but said he lacked enjoyment over the last two seasons.

"For me it was always an individual feeling that I had that I could no longer be at the Lions and give my 100 per cent commitment every week," he said.

Sherman's manager Liam Pickering said the player had only wanted to go to the `Dogs.

"He was really keen to get to Melbourne, (he's a) Tassie boy and he's done the travelling for four years, every second weekend," Pickering said.

"He's pretty keen to play in Melbourne, that's been the driving factor for him.

"There was obviously interest from Richmond early on as well.

"I've had a few text messages from Justin, he's been on edge a bit, but it's all good."

Bulldogs football manager James Fantasia said Sherman could play several roles through the midfield and half-back.

It was a big trade week for the Bulldogs, who also gained highly-rated teenagers Mitch Wallis and Tom Liberatore through the father-son rule.

They traded Andrejs Everitt to Sydney for Patrick Veszpremi and recruited Geelong speedster Nathan Djerrkura.

The Bulldogs have reached the last three preliminary finals and clearly believe their premiership window remains open.

"It's been a good week in terms of our recruits," Fantasia said.

"From the outset, we said we'd be aggressive in this period, we felt it was the right time to go hard at some younger players off other lists who perhaps weren't getting an opportunity."

Forward Josh Hill will also remain a Bulldog after talks with Hawthorn, in particular, failed to generate a deal.

"We've been asked about Josh right throughout the week," Fantasia said.

"That hasn't really progressed to a place where it would be beneficial to both groups.

"We said from the outset he's a required player and we'd be delighted to keep him on our list."

Brought to you by AAP © 2024 AAP