Essendon defender earns new deal

Bombers defender Tom Cutler has signed a new one-year deal to remain at Tullamarine for a further 12 months.

Having cemented his spot in Ben Rutten's defence toward the latter half of this season, Cutler has emerged as a formidable asset to the Bombers since arriving from Brisbane.

The 26-year-old returned to Victoria after six seasons with the Lions, joining Essendon at the end of 2019.

After being limited to eight appearances last year and only three matches until Round 14 in 2021, Cutler's early career at Bomberland struggled to get off the runway.

However, in a new role offering plenty of run and use out of defence, the Oakleigh Chargers product has become key in Essendon's return to the top-eight.

“It is a privilege to play for the Essendon Football Club and I’m thankful for the opportunity to continue that next season,” Cutler said via the club's announcement.

“I really enjoyed playing a different role in defence in the second half of the season and I’m looking forward to getting to work with my teammates and coaches this upcoming pre-season.

“The improvements we’ve made on and off the field, in such a short space of time are encouraging. We are establishing a quality foundation and I’m excited to see what the future holds for our group.”

Cutler has played a total of 87 AFL matches since making his debut with the Lions in 2014, and now adds to an extensive list of re-signings at Essendon this year.

Kaine Baldwin (2022), Matt Guelfi (2022), Brayden Ham (2022), Tom Hird (2022), Harrison Jones (2023), Cian McBride (2022), Zach Merrett (2027), Darcy Parish (2023), Mason Redman (2023), Devon Smith (2023), Jake Stringer (2024), Alec Waterman (2022) and Brandon Zerk-Thatcher (2023) have all inked new deals in 2021.

The Bombers have bid farewell to retiring duo Cale Hooker and Patrick Ambrose, while midfielder David Zaharakis has not been offered a new deal for 2022.