Delisted St Kilda forward Jack Hayes is prepared to wait with "open arms" for another AFL opportunity after his time was cut short at the Moorabbin club.
Hayes was a mature-aged recruit, with the Saints elevating the SANFL star to the elite level ahead of the 2022 season after claiming the Jack Oatey Medal (best on ground in the SANFL grand final) for the Woodville-West Torrens the year before.
Unfortunately, the South Australian had a horror run with injury, limiting him to eight games in three seasons.
And now, with his injuries behind him, Hayes isn't giving up on his childhood dreams and will move anywhere in the nation to keep them alive.
"The body is feeling good, I wish it felt like this one year into my AFL career," Hayes said onย SEN.
"The knee is feeling really good, and I'm pretty fit at the moment because I've been doing a program hoping I'd get another shot at St Kilda, but it wasn't to be.
"So I'm ready to go โฆ hopefully there's something out there. If there happens to be an opportunity somewhere else, I'll jump at it with open arms.
"You'd go anywhere, whether it was to WA, Queensland, back to SA โฆ if there's a club out there that wants me to train on again, I'm happy to do that."
Hayes initially received interest from Collingwood as a delisted free agent, who re-directed its attention to teammate Tim Membrey, who officially signed with the club on November 1.
The 18 sides all have the opportunity to sign delisted players over the next seven days, but most will be preparing for the National Draft on November 20-21.
As a result, the 28-year-old will be forced to wait, hoping a list spot will still be available ahead of the beginning of pre-season, leaving the behind-the-scenes work to his manager.
"At this stage, I'd probably move back to Adelaide and give the SANFL a go if that were the case," Hayes continued.
"I'm 28, so I'd probably try to settle my life down a little bit and find another job, but I'll have to wait and see what the next month holds, then I'll go from there.
"I'd love to play for Adelaide; I was a Crows supporter growing up, so I would love that."
