FORMER Brisbane ruckman Billy Longer can’t wait to get started at St Kilda, after securing a move from the Lions just a couple of hours before the trade window shut on Friday.
“It’s very exciting for me,” Longer said after signing on with the Saints.
“It’s a developing club and there will be a lot of young players so it’s a great place for me to continue my football career.”
Longer played nine games for Brisbane across two seasons after the Lions selected him with pick No. 8 in the 2011 National Draft.
While he demonstrated great promise and athleticism during his time in Queensland, he struggled to establish himself in Michael Voss’ best 22 with Matthew Leuenberger doing the bulk of the ruck duties.
“The way the Lions were with Leuenberger in such great form, made it tough for me to contest that No. 1 ruck position. The way Brisbane was for the last two years, it was hard to fit in.”
But Longer’s desire to return back to Victoria stretches beyond his football ambitions, with the 20-year-old citing the lure of playing in front of his family as a contributing factor to the trade request.
“For me personally, wanting to move clubs was a bit about coming home – back to my family and support networks,” he said.
“Coming home was definitely a catalyst in the move, but I definitely wouldn’t have wanted to come down to Melbourne if it was to hinder my development as a ruckman and footballer.”
Longer is familiar with a number of his new teammates after playing junior representative football with them and can’t wait to re-unite with one in particular.
“There are a lot of young boys at the club and a few that I played with at the Northern Knights with like Jack Newnes. It’s just really exciting to get started I suppose,” he told AFL Trade Radio.
“I’m just very excited at the prospect and where we are heading and I thought it would be a great opportunity to be involved with.”
When asked whether he had received any assurances from the coaching staff regarding his role at St Kilda, Longer stopped short of labelling the first ruck position his for the taking, instead he hopes to forge a long-term relationship with fellow big-man Tom Hickey in 2014 and beyond.
“To be honest, we (Scott Watters and me) sort of touched on eventually being that No. 1 ruckman whenever the day is. But also we want to create a partnership between Tom Hickey and myself and he’s got a few strategies in place to be able to enable that.”
Longer will spend the next couple of weeks relocating from Brisbane back to Melbourne, before pre-season training officially begins on November 6 ahead of St Kilda’s trip to Boulder, Colorado later in November.
You can follow Tom Morris on Twitter: @tommorris32
