MELBOURNE has extended the contracts of second year duo Matt Jones and Dean Kent.
The pair has added a further two years to their existing deals, locking them at the Demons until at least the end of 2016.
Manager of football operations Josh Mahoney said Jones and Kent had displayed fine first-up seasons in 2013 to warrant their new agreements.
“Matt came to the club as a mature-age recruit last year and to be able to play every game in his first season was a great achievement. He’s returned in great condition and is training well in the pre-season,” he told melbournefc.com.au.
“We were happy to reward Matt with an extension to his current contract and we look forward to him playing an important role through our midfield.
“Dean showed his potential in his first year of AFL football, particularly during the back part of last season. We see him being an important player for us going forward in the future and we’re very happy he’s signed on for an extended period.”
Jones, who played all 22 matches in 2013, after being selected at No.52 in the 2012 NAB AFL Draft, said it had continued a incredible journey over the past 12 to 18 months.
“It’s just nice that the club has shown faith in me and hopefully I can repay the faith in the footy club,” the 26-year-old told melbournefc.com.au.
“With all of the new coaches and all of the new players coming to the club, I was pretty keen to get it done, so I knew I’d be part of the club going forward.
“My manager approached the footy club and it all happened pretty quickly. They started talking before Christmas and it’s only taken a couple of weeks, so it’s all done, which is good.”
Kent, 20, who played 15 games last year, after being claimed at No.48 in the 2012 NAB AFL Draft, said he still had to pinch himself about his AFL career.
“I was chatting to my manager about things with the club and then the club put an offer on the table to myself and my manager,” he said.
“We were pretty happy with the offer, so we put pen to paper now.
“My first year flew, so it was good to get another two years and I’m pretty excited about it, [given] where I’ve come from. I didn’t play state under 18s [for Western Australia] and then I played a few games last year, so it’s helped me out.”
