Greater Western Sydney coach Kevin Sheedy says his AFL club is back in the race to sign Collingwood forward Travis Cloke.

Giants chief executive David Matthews announced in May his side would not be chasing Cloke, who becomes a free agent at the end of the season and is seeking a cashed-up contract.

However, the Magpies’ recent decision to put contract discussions with Cloke on hold has resurrected GWS’s interest.

“If he doesn’t sign a contract, I reckon there’s a few clubs out there and we’ll have to definitely have a look at him,” Sheedy said on Thursday.

“Because we can’t just sit on our hands if he doesn’t come to terms.

“That style of player (a key forward) put the Swans on the map. Look at (Tony) Lockett and Barry Hall.

“So it’s quite amazing how things venture out. It looks like a long and drawn out contractual problem.”

Sheedy and company will have a chance to see Cloke’s wares on Saturday, provided Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley doesn’t rest the 2010 premiership star from the Showground Stadium clash.

“You’ve got Cloke coming up to play and he’s off contract. It’s not often a team has a player off contract and they fly him up for us to come and see. That’s pretty generous from Collingwood,” he said.

“It’s like bringing up Tony Lockett or Barry Hall. Saying ‘hey he’s off contract Giants, would you like to look at him personally?

“There’ll be a tour (of the Giants’ living quarters at Breakfast Point). Don’t worry about that.

“We’ll make sure the bus gets sidetracked. We might get the bus driver to accidentally turn down the wrong street – it’s only seven minutes away from here.”

The four-time premiership coach said he had no concerns about Cloke’s current patchy form.

“I never worry about form. Absolutely (he could have the impact of a Hall or Lockett).

“He’s a very strong, powerful contested key forward, and they’re the sort of people that are draw cards.

“And if we want to build up our attendance here, in the end we’ve got to bring draw cards along as well.”

And Sheedy said there could yet be more twists in the Cloke tale to come.

“Collingwood are probably saying they’ve got the grip right there where they feel like they want it (by putting contract discussions on hold).

“But just remember what happened with Richmond and Collingwood. They thought they had David Cloke and Geoff Raines.

“They walked out on Richmond years ago and I don’t think Richmond’s ever been that good since. It’s a difficult problem for clubs and managers.”