Jesse Hogan to consider long-term contract extension to stay at Melbourne Demons

JESSE Hogan has given Melbourne a huge shot in the arm by declaring he will consider a long-term contract extension.

AFL Round 8. Melbourne vs Western Bulldogs at the MCG. Jesse Hogan kicks a goal . Pic: Michael Klein. Sunday May 24, 2015.

JESSE Hogan has given Melbourne a huge shot in the arm by declaring he will consider a long-term contract extension.

The Demons great white hope won this year’s Rising Star Award and has already been sat down by the club for a detailed presentation on their future plans.

He told the Herald Sun he was “open” to a contract extension that would lock him away well past his 2017 contract expiry.

It is a measure of Melbourne’s dependence on their marquee player that they would devote such energy so early to locking him away.

Melbourne forward Jesse Hogan with his Rising Star trophy. Picture: Wayne Ludbey

That presentation involved coach-in-waiting Simon Goodwin and senior coach Paul Roos as they identified Melbourne’s path to finals and success.

“We have started (contract) discussions and we are not too deep into it. I have still got two years on my contract and it’s not the most urgent thing but I am open to it,’’ he said.

“I sat down with Goody and Roosy and Peter Jackson and had a presentation and it was laid out,’’ he said.

“It was good, a lot of clubs do that but I really agreed with the direction of the club and a lot of stuff made sense.

“The direction for the next three years was very promising.”

Any deal would come at a premium, with Hogan able to write his own cheque if he departed given his massive potential as a goalkicking weapon.

Geelong champion Cameron Ling was only half-joking when he said the Demons should offer him a 10-year, $15 million contract earlier this year.

Asked if those contract discussions were preliminary but definitely heading in the right direction, he replied: “I basically couldn’t have summed it up any better.”

West Australian Hogan has quickly settled into the Melbourne lifestyle, seen to have a level head and be more concerned with future success than a major pay cheque.

But with clubs like Fremantle on the lookout for key forwards the Demons will be wary until he puts pen to paper.

The Demons are hopeful that signature will come before Round 1 or in the early rounds of the 2016 season.

“Melbourne is an awesome place and I am loving it, especially when you get a weekend like this,’’ Hogan said.

The Demons are set to add more midfield talent to provide Hogan with scoring chances, hopeful of luring Essendon’s Jake Melksham, GWS hard nut Tom Bugg and Collingwood’s Ben Kennedy.

Originally published as Jesse Hogan to consider long-term contract extension to stay at Melbourne Demons