Dumped Demons keen to play on

Jeff White and Adem Yze are pessimistic about their chances of finding a new AFL home after being dumped by Melbourne.

The duo play their last game for the Demons on Sunday against Richmond at the MCG.

The Demons, who will collect the wooden spoon, told the pair they were not in their long-term plans which focus on youth in a bid to regain on-field competitiveness.

“I think the direction of the club is always paramount,” coach Dean Bailey said.

“The club is bigger than any individual but having said that it was a very tough decision. For the club to move forward, we needed to make that decision.

White, 31, and Yze, 30 knew their futures at Melbourne were bleak after being dropped during the season.

The Demons promoted developing ruckman Mark Jamar and Paul Johnson ahead of White late in the year, while Yze has spent the majority of the season playing with the club’s VFL affiliate Sandringham.

White, a 267-game veteran, said he held no animosity towards Melbourne, but hoped he would be thrown an AFL lifeline elsewhere.

“If I take my playing cap off, and look at it from an outside perspective, we all want the club to succeed and move forward to playing finals footy and I totally understand (my delisting),” White said.

“But from a personal point of view, I still feel like I’ve got some time left.

“I’m not hanging my hat on getting a spot at an AFL club next year, but I’m definitely putting my hand up to say, `Look, my mind feels good, my body feels good I want to continue playing.’”

Yze said he too would nominate for the draft but gave himself a half a per cent chance of being picked up.

The Demons utility will be remembered for playing 226 straight games, second only to former teammate Jim Stynes (244) on the AFL’s all-time consecutive games record list.

On Sunday, he will earn AFL life membership when he makes his 300th AFL appearance – comprising of 271 premiership games, 25 pre-season games, and four International Rules matches.

But he revealed a knee injury suffered in the VFL could have thwarted the achievement.

“I needed an injection to play (last week),” Yze said.

“Jimmy (Stynes) came to me to say that `you need two more games for life membership.’

“To play last week and obviously to get up this week to be a life member of the AFL is something I can really be proud of.”

Bailey praised White’s courage and ability to dominate the ruck despite being shorter than most of his rivals.

He also marvelled at Yze possessing a “special quality.”

“He could do the absolute spectacular thing when you least expected him to do it, he’d do something – not so many players in the AFL can do that often,” he said.

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