AFL trade and contract news: Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera re-signs with St Kilda

St Kilda young gun Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera has turned his back on a potential move home to sign a contract extension at the Saints. See the exclusive details.

Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera has re-signed with the Saints.

St Kilda has secured its most precious signature with Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera rejecting a move home to South Australia to remain at Moorabbin.

The Herald Sun exclusively revealed on Tuesday that the No. 11 draft pick had recommitted for a further two years, taking his deal through to the end of 2025.

There was speculation that Wanganeen-Milera could follow the likes of Izak Rankine and Jason Horne-Francis home in what would’ve been a big blow to the Saints’ rebuild.

Wanganeen-Milera was taken with the No.11 pick and was one of the few early picks from the 2021 draft who remained out of contract this season.

Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera is staying at St Kilda. Picture: Michael Willson/AFL Photos

“Obviously the lure to return home has been there, but I’m really confident with the direction the club is heading and want to be a part of it,” Wanganeen-Milera said.

“I’ve made some strong friends at the club and have had some amazing mentors in Bradley Hill and Mason Wood show me the ropes, so I’m keen to see what comes next.”

The Saints are also armed with salary cap space and came agonisingly close to signing free agent Jordan De Goey (Collingwood) last year.

“We had a lot of interviews, meetings, kind of did all the due protocols I guess just to try and get the best understanding of what it would be like if I went there,” De Goey said after deciding to stay at the Magpies on a five-year deal.

The Wanganeen-Milera coup was seen as a massive show of faith in new coach Ross Lyon after the club’s blistering 3-0 start to the season, which equals St Kilda’s best start since Lyon took the club to grand finals in 2009-10.

Lyon has repositioned Wanganeen-Milera behind the ball this season and his pace and silky skills have been crucial to the club’s blistering ball speed and run off halfback.

Wanganeen-Milera has impressed in the opening rounds of the season. Picture: Getty Images

“Nasiah’s work ethic and talent speaks for itself and is something we are confident will only develop further as he spends more time in the senior side,” acting football boss Dave Misson said.

“He has impressed since moving to half-back this season under the guidance of Corey Enright, and while he’s still in the infancy of his AFL career, we see Nasiah right at the heart of our club moving forward.”

The 20-year-old has played 20 AFL games and is averaging 16 kicks this year.

Wanganeen-Milera’s teammates were thrilled when his contract extension was announced as they returned to Moorabbin on Tuesday following Saturday night’s spirited win against Essendon for the club’s 150th anniversary celebrations.

Suddenly the Saints have locked away Wanganeen-Milera until 2025, Max King until 2026 and captain Jack Steele and Rowan Marshall until 2027.

Like Wanganeen-Milera, academy guns Mitch Owens and Marcus Windhager have also recommitted until 2025.

The next big list priority for new Saints list boss Stephen Silvagni will be the signature of 2023 free agent Jade Gresham.

Optimism grows at Blues over AFL’s most prized signature

– Glenn McFarlane and Jon Ralph

Carlton is increasingly confident Tom De Koning believes his future is at the club as it seeks to kick-start meaningful talks on a bridging two-year deal.

The Herald Sun reported last year De Koning had massive offers from rival clubs and was prepared to put off contract talks until well into the season.

While the details of any possible deal are far from being locked in, De Koning’s strong start to the season has boosted the Blues optimism that he will rebuff rival deals.

Carlton has the cap space to offer him a deal of around $600,000 a season, which would be under what rival clubs would offer.

Geelong has been desperate to unite De Koning with his young brother, premiership defender Sam De Koning and made a concerted bid for the Blues ruckman several years ago in a trade play.

The Cats have come hard, while Sydney’s interest is real and Essendon and St Kilda are also keen observers of his contract talks.

The Blues are confident they can retain Tom De Koning. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/AFL Photos/Getty Images)

The Blues are aware De Koning is keen to be the No.1 ruckman at whichever club he ends up playing with next year.

Carlton has shown it is prepared to play both De Koning and Marc Pittonet as a duo, but they are both managed by Connors Sports with deals expiring this year.

The 23-year-old will be paid on potential given he has played only 44 games for the Blues as he comes off a career-best 19 games in 2022.

The Blues have the mouthwatering prospect of De Koning, Charlie Curnow and Harry McKay entering their prime together as a dream trio up forward at times.

A possible two-year deal for Tom De Koning would follow a trend led by Collingwood’s Jordan De Goey and his brother Sam at Geelong as a bridging deal that allows him to sign a mega-contract as he enters the peak of his career.

Originally published as AFL trade and contract news: Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera re-signs with St Kilda