West Preston-Lakeside confirms talks with leading VFL goalkicker Ahmed Saad
WEST Preston-Lakeside has confirmed its interest in the VFL’s leading goalkicker Ahmed Saad but dismissed suggestions he has signed with the NFL club.
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WEST Preston-Lakeside has confirmed its interest in the VFL’s leading goalkicker Ahmed Saad but says any suggestions he has signed with the Northern Football League club are premature.
Saad took out the VFL’s Frosty Miller Medal this year after booting 49 goals from 16 games with stand-alone club Coburg.
The former St Kilda small forward told Moreland Leader in June he hoped to return to the elite level next year.
West Preston president Paul McInerney confirmed the Roosters had sounded out Saad about his playing future.
But he denied speculation which surfaced last week that a deal had been agreed, confirming the 27-year-old would wait until after this month’s AFL national and rookie drafts before deciding his future.
Saad spent two years at Northern Blues in 2010 and 2011, where he developed a relationship with new West Preston coach Rob Maiorana.
“He’s got a good relationship with the coach Robbie, but at this stage it’s all talk,” McInerney said.
“We haven’t got anything to announce with him. Like a lot of clubs we are trying to recruit some players, I know there is a lot of talk going on.
“But at this stage I haven’t got anything to give you.”
Saad also has links to Roosters forward Patrick Karnezis through AFL Victoria.
McInerney acknowledged the pair would form a lethal one-two punch if Saad decided his next move was to J.E Moore Park.
“It would be nice to have him, there’s no doubt about that,” he said.
“We’ll keep working on him and a few others as well.”
Asked if the Roosters had spoken to Saad about the possibility of joining them for 2017, McInerney said: “We speak to a lot of players and we’d be lying if we said we hadn’t spoken to him. It’s something, we don’t know what he’s going to do. I imagine he’s left that with other clubs as well and told them the same.”
West Preston is also home to former Melbourne, Port Adelaide and Richmond on-baller David Rodan.
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