AFL to extend SSP window in wake of pre-season injuries as Jai Culley locked in for Demons
A former Eagle and a speedster forward have been locked in as replacement players for Andy Moniz-Wakefield and Jagga Smith after heartbreaking injuries on the weekend.
AFL
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Carlton added classy small forward Will White and Melbourne locked in speedster Jai Culley as part of a special extension to the supplemental selection period on Monday.
White received the call-up after booting 21 goals across 20 games in the VFL last season, while former No. 1 midseason pick Culley received a dream AFL lifeline from the Demons on his 22nd birthday.
It came after the AFL on Monday granted a request to extend the SSP window after the two clubs lost players to season-ending knee injuries in their match simulation games on Saturday.
The deadline had been set for last Friday, but the Herald Sun revealed clubs asked the AFL to reopen the window so they could replace Andy Moniz-Wakefield (Melbourne) and Jagga Smith (Carlton) after suffering cruel ACL injuries.
The clubs told the AFL it was unfair to close the SSP window until after every club had played their match simulation game across the weekend.
The league gave the green light after talks with rival clubs on Monday, permitting the deadline extension.
It was a relief for the Blues and Demons who would have been left one short on their lists until the mid-season draft without the extension.
The Blues considered a batch of key defenders who trained with the club over summer including former Hawk Denver Grainger-Barras but opted for another classy small forward.
It means Carlton has added two livewires, ex Geelong and Port Adelaide small forward Francis Evans, and White, in one week to round out their list for the 2025 season.
White, from South Warrnambool, improved his 2km time from a pre-Christmas 6:04 to 5:58 while training with the senior group, which further impressed Blues staff.
He also finished third in the VFL team’s best and fairest and won the award as the Blues’ reserves most promising young player.
List boss Nick Austin said 20-year-old White, who was given No. 38, had speed.
“Will is a quick player and can shut down opponents on the run and is always happy to put in the repeat efforts to help his team,” Austin said.
“On the field Will is full of life; he is always bursting with energy and that’s exactly how he is off the field as well.
“It is a unique circumstance in which Will has earned an opportunity but it is one we are looking forward to giving him every chance of taking with both hands.”
Culley played 12 games at West Coast but signed up at Casey after he was let go by the Eagles last year off the back of an ACL injury.
The 193cm goal kicker has impressed as a playmaking midfielder and could help provide some insurance for the Demons’ star midfielders.
Melbourne also added Werribee’s Jack Henderson to its midfield stocks last week in place of injured forward Shane McAdam, who ruptured his achilles.
McAdam has only managed three games for the Demons since crossing from the Crows at the end of the 2023 season.
Originally published as AFL to extend SSP window in wake of pre-season injuries as Jai Culley locked in for Demons
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