North Melbourne’s Jaidyn Stephenson retires from AFL at just 25

At just 25 years of age, former Rising Star Jaidyn Stephenson has retired from the AFL. JON RALPH has the details on why the Kangaroo made the decision.

Former Rising Star Jaidyn Stephenson has retired from the game at only 25 after losing the passion for football.

Stephenson’s decision ahead of the national and rookie drafts will give the Roos another list spot and yet more salary cap space given what is likely to be a negotiated settlement.

North Melbourne will on Tuesday confirm Stephenson’s decision, but the Herald Sun understands he has told the club he is keen to move on from AFL football.

The finer points of his contract settlement are still being worked through by his management company Connors Sports after a career lasting 122 games and seven seasons.

With Stephenson still contracted to the end of 2025 on a deal of over $500,000, the Roos are likely to come to a financial arrangement over the last year of his deal.

Jaidyn Stephenson has retired. Picture: Getty Images

Players who retire can walk away from the final seasons of their contracts in the same manner as Western Bulldogs premiership player Tom Boyd or negotiate a financial settlement which is often about half of that year’s deal.

The decision to move on ahead of list lodgements will allow him to try other passions but also gives the Roos another list spot to use in the national or rookie drafts, or leave open for a summer rookie.

It also underlines the brutal nature of AFL football, with Stephenson equipped with a brilliant skill set but coaches at times struggling to extract the physicality needed to thrive in a contested game.

The Roos have picks two and 62 in the national draft but are open to trading out their future first-round pick with a club like Richmond to secure two early selections in this national draft.

A genetic heart issue which came up in medical testing meant the Pies only made the decision to draft Stephenson hours before the 2017 national draft.

The former Collingwood No.6 draft pick took the AFL by storm in 2018 when he kicked 38 goals as a first-year half forward who had the world at his feet.

He had a perfect blend of pace, nous for goal and speed which seemed likely to see him play 200 games at Collingwood given his level of talent.

But in a career of diminishing returns, Stephenson lasted only two more seasons at Collingwood before being traded as part of the salary cap dump that saw the Pies moving on a host of stars including Adam Treloar.

Stephenson burst onto the scene as a Magpie. Picture: AAP

Stephenson was on a five-year contract at the Roos but lasted only four years as he played a mix of AFL and VFL football, unable at times to play the brand football required of him under Alastair Clarkson and David Noble.

He played 21 games and kicked 26 goals in 2023 but could muster only a dozen games this year for eight goals straight, falling out of the senior side.

Stephenson, 26 in July, was involved in a pair of controversies across his 122-game career.

He was suspended for the last 10 games of 2019 after placing bets on Collingwood games and also handed a $20,000 fine.

Two of the seven bets involving Collingwood involved his own performance, including kicking a goal and kicking three goals or more in a certain game.

He also suffered a fractured hip at the end of 2021 when he was hospitalised after falling off a mountain bike in his backyard while drunk.

He said at the time he had never been in more pain in his life.

“It’s definitely something I regret, not only the embarrassment of it, but the sheer pain I was in for the next week or two was just excruciating and the worst pain I’ve ever been in.”

Originally published as North Melbourne’s Jaidyn Stephenson retires from AFL at just 25