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WEST Coast Eagles star Daniel Kerr has received a two year contract extension that will see him remain with the club until he is 31 years of age.
The news was hinted at earlier in the week and became official today after the club announced the deal on its website.
“Potentially he’s got another 40 or 50 games in him,” coach John Worsfold said yesterday.
“He’s had a remarkable career considering the setbacks he’s had along the way.
“He was a massive contributor to the club in winning a premiership and playing in two Grand Finals.”
Kerr, 29, was the 18th pick in the 2000 AFL Draft and would have been eligible to become a free agent under the AFL’s new scheme at the end of this season if he had not signed the new deal.
A star performer for the Eagles literally from day one with the club, his early years were marred by a number of off-field issues. To his credit he seems to have matured since then and has become a dependable team leader.
The well-decorated midfielder has earned a premiership medal playing for the Eagles as well as an All-Australian jumper, the 2007 Geoff Christian Medal and 2004 Goal of the Year. He also finished as runner up in a close contest to team mate Ben Cousins in the 2005 Brownlow Medal voting.
This weekend he will play his 200th game for West Coast as the Eagles fly to Tasmania to play North Melbourne and Kerr is optimistic about his ability to continue playing at a high level.
“It (the contract) will take me until I’m 31 and I’d like to do one more deal after that but we’ll have to see how the body is holding up,” Kerr said on Thursday.
While the news is good for Kerr the prospects for injured team mate Mark Nicoski, however, are in doubt. Yesterday the club revealed that the injured forward has suffered a setback during training that was likely to delay his return for a number of weeks.
Nicoski took to Twitter earlier in the week to say (across three tweets) ”Suffered a mild setback to my hamstring at training on Monday. In the best interests of my hammy and it’s ability to heal properly - the club and I have chosen to avoid forcing a return this season. It gives me the opportunity to rest it adequately and ensure 2013 is a (s)uccessful one for myself and WCE. Cheers for all the support on here from fans, you’ve been amazing.lets get behind the team for finals!”
With the 28 year old Nicoski out of contract at the end of the year questions are now being asked about his future at the club.
“We’ve made no decisions on our list management going forward,” Worsfold said as he avoided making a statement about Nicoski’s long-term prospects with the club.
“All of those decisions will be made post-season, as they normally are.
“In some cases you can look at it and say Nico has been extremely fortunate, he’s played some great footy, he was part of a wonderful turnaround for the club.
“I’ve said it before, last year was one of the most successful seasons the club has had other than the premiership-winning seasons, he was a massive part of that and helped the club achieve a huge amount.”
The Eagles will face North Melbourne in Hobart this Saturday at Blundstone Arena, with defenders Will Schofield and Adam Selwood both expected to be available after injuries.
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