Nathan Jones will be pulling on the Melbourne jumper for a 15th season in 2020 after signing a one-year contraction extension with the club.
Jones, a stalwart of the club since his 2006 debut, has won three best & fairest awards and captained the club since 2014.
The signing comes after months of speculation that Jones would not sign on with the Demons and continue his career elsewhere, but the club and Jones were able to finally come to an agreement which sees Jones remain at the club he has called home since his inception into the league.
“Of course, I’m very happy to continue to play for this great club – I plan on playing for as long as I can,” Jones told Melbourne Media.
“This year was extremely disappointing, the most difficult of my career I would say – we failed under expectation. It was a steep learning curve for everyone involved.
“Even at my age and experience, we were taught many great lessons of what it’ll take to be a great team. The game doesn’t owe you anything.
“For that alone, I see reason for great optimism. We face some challenging times ahead with what it takes to get back to our best, but with that, has presented great opportunity for everyone here.”
Jones admitted to weighing up the thought of leaving after talks between him and the club stalled during the season, but is glad he will remain at the club he has called home since he was a teenager.
“Personally, I weighed up a lot, and eventually found some perspective,” he said.
“Playing multiple roles all year and having a really injury-interrupted prep before the season, I managed to get through the year.
“I’m very real about where I’m at with my age and form, but ultimately I still feel I have plenty of good footy in me and add value to the club and team when I do so.
“Pre-season will be more important than ever for me, but that challenge really excites me to drive myself and the group back to playing like the team we are capable of.”
