Gary Ablett will almost certainly not be a Gold Coast Suns player in 2018.
In an extraordinary interview on The Footy Show on Thursday night, Ablett revealed the personal matters he is currently dealing with in his life are such that he may even retire at the end of this season.
The two-time Brownlow Medalist, who was denied a move back to Geelong at the end of last season, hinted he will likely approach the Suns about a return home to the Cats again at the end of the year.
However, he reiterated that he is completely committed to the Suns in 2017 and is committed to giving the remainder of the season his all.
"This may be my last season," Ablett said.
"I've got some things going on in my life that I'm not going to elaborate on, but they're my number one priority at the moment.
"I said to the club that I'm super committed to this year and that I'm going to give it everything but I don't know what 2018 holds for me.
"I'll sit down with the club at the end of the year, we'll talk through that and we'll work out what the next step is.
"There's some other things going on in my life that are my number one priority and I need to work through those things and as I said that will be something that I'll talk to the club about at the end of the year, we'll work out what the next step is, but I'm fully committed to this year,"ย he said when asked if he would retire if he was again refused a trade.
"If it does end up being my last, I want to make sure that I make the most of it, I want to play finals football."
Ablett refused to reveal what the personal issues are that he is dealing with at the moment.
The former Geelong champion is contracted with the Suns until the end of 2018.
"This may be my last season" - Gary Ablett doesn't know what 2018 will hold for him. #9AFLFootyShow pic.twitter.com/vbNUA182Ub
— The AFL Footy Show (@AFLFootyShow) April 6, 2017
Ablett also defended his body language and performance on the weekend, which has been heavily criticised in recent days, following the Suns' 102-point loss to GWS on the weekend.
โI mean, when you hear anyone speaking about you like that โฆ I would be lying to say that it didnโt hurt,โ Ablett said.
โI go out there every week, Iโm a super competitive guy and I donโt like to lose. So Iโm sure you know, if you were to look at footage of any team that loses by 100 points, you will find footage of guys with their head down because you know, weโre competitive as footballers and we want to win games."