Geelong veteran Mitch Duncan has revealed the possibility of playing elsewhere in 2026 has “been floated” amid a link to West Coast.
Duncan, slated for unrestricted free agency at season’s end, also confirmed he wouldn’t be playing on with the Cats next year.
The 34-year-old, who is currently battling a shoulder injury suffered in the VFL in early July, originally hails from Perth and said the prospect of prolonging his AFL career into a 17th season was “a little bit exciting”.
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“It’s been floated,” Duncan told Triple M of the possibility of moving clubs at the end of the year.
“I’ve got pretty solid roots in Geelong … but I suppose when you get to this part of your career, all these options can potentially open up, so we’ll weight those up as they come through and see where it all lands and see what’s best for us as a family, not necessarily just me.
“It’s a little bit exiting, though, potentially, of that happening. But obviously (there’s) a lot of water to go under the bridge.”
Duncan has played 305 games with Geelong since being drafted to the Surf Coast in 2009, including the club’s premiership triumphs in 2011 and 2022 — but he said the call to part ways at the end of this season was a mutual one.
Quizzed on what the Cats have communicated to him regarding his future, Duncan said: “Nothing, really. I don’t think I’ll be playing at Geelong, and that’s pretty much on both terms.
“And I don’t want to speak out of school, there’s still a little bit to go throughout this year, so we’ll see how it pans out.
“They (the Cats) have been great with communication and things like that, so that’s probably all I can really say, at the moment.”
Herald Sun journalist Jon Ralph provided detail on the Eagles link during Fox Footy’s post-game coverage of Geelong’s 44-point win over Essendon.
“Herald Sun reported on Tuesday that he is considering an offer from West Coast … he has confirmed (on Friday) that he will not be playing on at Geelong next year, by mutual decision,” Ralph said on Fox Footy.
“The feedback has been really strong with them, a lot of communication. It (a move to extend his career) is something that really excites him — I think that probably surprises us — but he is initially from Perth.
“He’ll be very keen to go into coaching at some stage, so of course you’d be a player, you might play some WAFL, you would then transition into coaching. If he wants to do that and is excited by it, then absolutely.”