Watson’s announcement confirms that of the 12 players who have finished their suspensions who are still at Essendon this year, only Michael Hibberd and Tayte Pears are not staying.
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JOBE Watson said he had been unsure if would ever play in the AFL again after deciding to return to Essendon for next season.
Watson spent time in NY in his enforced year off and said he had had times when he “leaned either way” on his future.
The 31-year-old spent most of the year travelling overseas as he pondered his next move.
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“I was really fortunate that I was living in NY and my housemate was someone I was able to open up to and someone I could trust completely and be really honest with and to be able to talk through how I was feeling and what I was going through”, he said.
The 2012 Brownlow medallist returned to Melbourne earlier this month after spending part of his season-long suspension for doping offences working as a barista in NY. “At different times I have sort of been waning and wondering what I was going to do”, he said.
“I leant either way for a long time”.
“I personally feel it would be a great time for Heppell to take over and let Jobe just play”, Lloyd said. And he said it was unknown if he could recapture his best playing form. Obviously, the time is right now to announce it.
Watson appeared at the media conference to confirm that he would be returning to play for the Bombers next season after serving a 12-month doping suspension, however it was his baseball hat with the word “feminist” written on it that grabbed all the attention.
Hibberd wants a trade to Melbourne and Pears is pursuing a career in fire fighting.
But the uncertainty is not over for Watson.
If that fails, as expected, the AFL Commission will then decide on whether it strips Watson of his Brownlow Medal.
While Essendon remain adamant that Watson should keep the medal, the likelihood is that he will be stripped of the honour because of the doping ban.
“I’m at peace with where it has gone and where I’m at”, he said of the long-running saga.
“I did a lot of training while I was over there (in the US) …”
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“But It was really fun, I volunteered in a coffee shop, ‘Hole In The Wall.’ I found it liberating”.
