By Jonty Ralphsmith
Former West Coast Eagles midfielder Jai Culley’s Supplemental Selection Period (SSP) signing with Melbourne was a big coup for the Casey Demons according to the club’s coach.
The Dandenong Stingrays graduate was taken by the Eagles with pick 1 in the 2022 midseason draft, but was delisted last year after an injury-interrupted two-and-a-half seasons which yielded 12 games.
The 22-year-old signed with Casey for the 2025 season, but was signed in preseason by a Melbourne side which lost players to injury.
“It was fantastic,” Whitford said of the signing.
“He’s a local product so that was appealing for us but he’s also talented, so we wanted to work to get him back onto a list as soon as possible.
“He came in and was unreal – he bought into everything our program offered and did plenty of training with the AFL group and his form was outstanding.
“It shows that you can train with us and get an opportunity on an AFL list – so hopefully we get some more this year.”
Culley is currently sidelined with foot soreness and is set to spend the next three to five weeks on the sidelines, before pushing for selection, having shown his ability at AFL level during his time at the Eagles.
