West Preston-Lakeside hopes former Melbourne best-and-fairest Aaron Davey will play at least two games with the club this year after aligning himself with the Roosters.
Davey, 30, has signed to be part of Richmond’s standalone Victorian Football League (VFL) side, but could play for West Preston-Lakeside on two bye weekends during the Tigers’ 2014 season.
Roosters coach Frank Raso said he had little doubt Davey would be one of the most dynamic players in the Northern Football League.
But he was keen to temper the excitement surrounding the commitment to the club.
He said it was more likely Davey could play full-time for the club in either 2015 or 2016.
“He’ll train a bit and play a couple of games, but it’s probably longer term,” Raso said.
“Hopefully he has a year at Richmond, he’s going to do a development thing with them.
“Once he’s had enough of that sort of thing we’d like to think we can get him full time.”
Richmond’s first VFL bye coincides with West Preston-Lakeside’s Round 5 match againet Eltham on May 10, when Davey could make his debut at J.E. Moore Park.
In a blow for the Roosters’ hopes of having Davey play more matches with the club, the Tigers’ second bye falls on the same weekend as the NFL Division 1 bye on June 7.
“If he plays a couple of games this year we’ll be happy, that’s basically it.” Raso said.
“He’s made it fully clear that Richmond is No.1 and they only get two byes.”
Raso said the club would be guided by Richmond regarding Davey’s availability, suggesting he could be asked to rest during the Tigers bye weeks.
Davey played 178 games with Melbourne over 10 years with the club, booting 174 goals before retiring at the end of the 2013 season.
West Preston-Lakeside has also signed Northern Blues defenders Joel McDonald and Nathan Valladares.
The pair have committed to the Roosters for at least the next two seasons.
Valladares played 19 games with the Blues’ Development League side last season, while McDonald represented the club 19 times – which included three senior games – and won the Blues’ Best First Year Player Award.
This article is courtesy of Leader Newspaper. The photo is courtesy of Getty Images.
