Bailey Humphrey signs four-year extension with Gold Coast, will be a Sun through to 2028

Gold Coast have moved quickly to re-sign one of their brightest young stars to a long-term deal in a big show of faith. See the exclusive details here.

GOLD COAST, AUSTRALIA - MAY 23: Bailey Humphrey of the Suns during a Gold Coast Suns AFL media opportunity at Austworld Centre Oval on May 23, 2023 in Gold Coast, Australia. (Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images)

Footy’s newest star Bailey Humphrey was sitting with his teammates eating dinner in Darwin this week when the penny finally dropped.

Six months into his football journey he couldn’t imagine playing with anyone else or at any other club — and it was time to make that decision public.

The Herald Sun can reveal Gold Coast’s No. 7 pick Humphrey has signed a four-year contract extension past his initial two-year deal, pledging the first six years of his career to his new home.

The deal through to 2028 is all but unprecedented in the AFL — a top-10 pick locked in for six seasons at his club just 11 games into his career.

Bailey Humphrey celebrates the match-sealing goal against the Western Bulldogs. Picture: Getty Images

It came with Humphrey declaring emphatically that he wanted to prove that loyalty with a long-term deal, adamant the club’s future is with coach Stuart Dew.

It is yet another show of faith in the Suns’ direction and the club’s capacity to help with welfare given Humphrey’s own battle with homesickness.

Humphrey has been a public mental health advocate in the wake of best friend Riley Pearce’s suicide two years ago as he battles his own issues with depression and anxiety.

But as he told the Herald Sun on Friday morning a day after that deal was brokered by agent Michael Oakes, he couldn’t be happier on the Gold Coast.

“I just thought it was the perfect time. Half the reason I did it for so long was to show the boys I am actually in. I can see this club going forward and heading in the perfect direction. I want to be part of their first bit of success, hopefully finals football. To sign on long-term shows a bit more loyalty than two years,” he said.

“I had my own process with it and had a really good chat with my family and it was the right thing to do to sign on long-term. It gives me security and I love the club and the coach and players so I just thought it was the perfect thing to do.

“I went out to dinner with the lads the other night and sat at the table and thought, “These are my actual mates now, not just my footy friends. So I figured it out and went back to my room and the next morning rang my manager and they got it done.”

Bailey Humphrey is a Sun until 2028. Picture: Getty Images

Top ten draft picks often sign an initial four-year deal — like Nick Daicos — or add an extra two seasons to their mandatory two-season deal early in their first year but adding another four seasons is unusual.

The deal has performance bonuses plus a CBA increase clause and will reflect his spectacular upside as an explosive ball winner — who capped that rise with the matchwinning goal against the Western Bulldogs.

Remarkably, Humphrey is yet to reach full fitness after a knee injury interrupted his pre-season.

In a week when Stuart Dew’s future was again questioned, Humphrey’s faith in the coach is unwavering.

“That is half the reason I wanted to sign on long-term,” he said.

“I knew Stuart would be my coach. I love him coaching me. He is a great coach. The boys love him, he is good at reassuring people where they are at with their spot. And the boys know he is our coach and we are extremely happy with that. He has a good relationship with the players, he tells the truth and is honest with feedback and that is why we are heading in the right direction.”

The ambassador for Mindfull Aus has moved in with senior teammate Wil Powell and says sounding boards like development boss Rhyce Shaw and the club’s psychologist have eased his transition into the club.

“It’s been difficult trying to find a balance between footy and the off-field stuff,” he said.

“Early days as an 18-year-old going into an AFL system I was focusing on footy so much. It was a struggle at the start and I was missing home but the club has been unbelievable for me and made me feel at home and made my family feel comfortable.”