FORMER North Melbourne footballer Jeremy Clayton has committed to making a Wimmera Football League return with the Warrack Eagles in 2018.
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Four seasons after making his most recent appearance with the club – in 2014 – the player some consider to be the club’s best football export will again wear the maroon and gold.
Warrack Eagles coach Ryan McKenzie said it was exciting news for the club.
“A lot of people around our area haven’t been able to see him play too much since he was 17 or 18 because he was so good that by the time he was 16, he was playing Rebels,” he said.
“I’ve already had plenty of phone calls and messages from people who are excited to see someone like Jez wants to come back to where it all started to have a kick and a bit of fun.
“He’s been the best player in the South Australian league and the best player in the Victorian league.
“There are certainly people from Warracknabeal that have played more AFL games than him but he could easily be rated as the best footballer the club has produced.”
After making his senior debut for Warracknabeal at the age of 15 he moved on to play with the North Ballarat Rebels in the TAC Cup the following season.
He was part of the the Rebels only TAC Cup premiership team in 1997 and went on to play with North Ballarat in the VFL before being rookie-listed by North Melbourne in 2002.
He played five AFL games in 2003 and would have won the VFL’s JJ Liston Trophy if he had not been ruled ineligible due to suspension.
A further three AFL games were added to his tally the following season before being desisted.
Clayton then came into his own while playing for Port Adelaide in the SANFL. He won the league’s top honour in his first season at the club and took out the club’s best and fairest award four seasons in a row from 2005 to 2008.
He called time on his career in 2012 after 127-game career across an eight-year period.
Clayton continued to live with his family in South Australia following his retirement and coached the Port District Football Club for the past three seasons.
Warrack Eagles president Adrian Bibby said the club had been trying to lure him back for years.
“There was stage where every year we’d make a trip over to try and talk him into coming back but he’s just been too busy,” he said.
“We’ve always hoped that one day he’d come back.
“We knew it was something he’d also wanted to do given what his dad and grandad had done while playing for Warracknabeal in the Wimmera league.
“Even if he just came back to play one more game for us, we would be rapt.”
Clayton made a one-off appearance for the Warrack Eagles in the 2014 before taking on his coaching role the following year.
A new job means that Clayton will not be able to play the full season with the club but McKenzie is hopeful he will be available for about half the season.
“He’s not quite sure what games he will be available for at this stage but we will certainly get some good games out of him,” he said.
The soon to be 37-year-old is expected to play predominantly up forward but McKenzie said he will largely leave it up to his experienced recruit to make decisions.
“On the leadership side of things he will be great for me and all the young guys in the team as well because he will come with new ideas,” he said.
“He’s still very fit despite not playing at all last season and he’s already been doing pre-season with a team in South Australia.
“Mainly he will just float around the forward line but he’ll push up the ground at different stages.
“If he’s feeling good and wants to jump on the footy I’m not going to say he’s not allowed to.”