Melbourne GM of Performance Alan Richardson says the club is “comfortable” with where contract talks sit with Luke Jackson and his management.
Jackson, who was drafted out of East Fremantle in Perth, comes out of contract at the end of the season.
The premiership ruckman is weighing up his future amid reported interest from WA clubs West Coast and Fremantle.
Gerard Whateley, the host of SEN’s Whateley, quizzed Richardson on Jackson’s future.
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Whateley: “Are you at all nervy? We’re in late June now and it doesn’t appear to be any real timeline.”
Richardson: “We’ll give ‘Jacko’ as much time as he needs. We’re working through that with his manager.
“We think he’s going to be a Melbourne player for a long time, so we’re reasonably comfortable with where that sits.
“Of course, we’d rather have that done and dusted given the stage of the year, but we’re comfortable with where it sits.
“Really importantly right from the outset we’ve said to Jacko and to his management group TLA that we’ll give them as much time as they need and that’s the way it’s playing out.”
Whateley: “Are you aware of rival interest, rival offers?”
Richardson: “I would be staggered if there wasn’t. They wouldn’t be doing their job.
“A young bloke with his talent, we’ve got no doubt that would be happening, but as I said, we’re pretty comfortable with where it sits from our end.”
Whateley: “Why are you confident that he’ll be a long-term Melbourne player?”
Richardson: “That’s just a reflection of the conversations that we’ve had with Jacko and with his management group.”
Jackson took out the 2021 Rising Star award to help the Demons end a 57-year premiership drought.
The 20-year-old will be Melbourne’s number one ruckman for the next few weeks while captain Max Gawn is sidelined with an ankle injury.