Bobby Hill remains without a suitor ahead of the return of pre-season, with St Kilda not in the hunt for the Norm Smith medallist.

Non-finalists will return to training on Monday and Hill’s hopes of finding a way back in to an AFL list after he departed Collingwood mid-year will hinge on proving himself on the training track over summer.

But there has been little interest so far in the small forward.

St Kilda was seen as an interested party given his cousin Brad Hill’s standing at Moorabbin and Saints footy boss Lenny Hayes didn’t shut the door on interest in the trade period.

But the club has made clear it has no plans to pursue the ex-Pie and Giant.

West Coast has not made inquiries into the West Australian, with fellow Perth team Fremantle also not interested.

The 102-game goalkicker is yet to line up a state league club for 2027, despite the growing likelihood a solid season at that level may be his best way to prove he is ready to return to an AFL club.

Hill has been putting on his own sell on social media in recent weeks with regular updates of him putting in hours in the gym, including on Wednesday when he shared posts of him working out under personal trainer Joss Holdsworth, who runs the Pulse 8 Centre in Melbourne.

Hill will turn 27 in February and his football high point was winning the Norm Smith Medal as best afield in Collingwood’s 2023 flag win.

He was signed up with the Pies until the end of 2030 on a lucrative deal but that was negotiated away when he and Collingwood split in July.

Hill played 14 games in 2025 and never came close to playing in 2026 before his exit.

He could join a new club as a delisted free agent, a summer signing or could take up a spot using the AFL’s new “bonus” list spot for Indigenous players.

PACKAGE DELIVERED: DELISTED HAWK JOINS STRINGER AT ST KILDA

— Jon Ralph

St Kilda has secured former Hawthorn ruck-forward Max Ramsden as ruck backup for Tom De Koning on a day where the Saints officially signed Jake Stringer.

The Herald Sun can reveal that the Saints have zeroed in on delisted key tall Ramsden as they bolster their key position stocks.

Ramsden, 23, played only 11 games in his four seasons at Hawthorn and will be used primarily as a ruckman for the Saints next year.

The Saints accepted a first-round pick from Geelong for ruck stalwart Rowan Marshall, which left them short on ruck cover after Max Heath’s move to Melbourne last years.

So it was critical for them to secure ruck cover, with Ramsden a ready-made strong-bodied ruckman who can also play forward.

St Kilda on Wednesday signed Stringer on a modest one-year deal after 48 goals for GWS this season.

His good mate Jesse Hogan had backed him in as a family man who needed another chance despite the Giants’ decision to move him on as they prioritise younger forwards.

Ramsden was used as a key forward in his two senior games for Hawthorn this year, but the Saints are hopeful that Max King will be fully fit for the 2027 season.

He would play alongside Cooper Sharman and Mitch Owens, with St Kilda desperately hoping that Tom De Koning can get through an entire season without injury.

De Koning missed the top 10 in the best and fairest in his first season at the club after crossing from Carlton on a mammoth offer, with Marshall finishing 10th.

But if he can fulfil his potential as a young ruckman who could take the competition by storm, St Kilda will hope he can take the lion’s share of the centre square opportunities.

The first delisted free agency period opened on Monday and runs until Friday with the Roos set to secure ex-Don Elijah Tsatas and former Richmond ruckman Samson Ryan.

Brisbane defender Darragh Joyce will arrive at the Roos as a free agent alongside Tsatas and Ryan, with manager Liam Pickering confirming the move for the Irishman after stints at St Kilda and the Lions.

Pickering told SEN that ex Pies utility Wil Parker would be at Carlton next year as a delisted free agent.

St Kilda has delisted Ryan Byrnes and Dan Butler but has committed to taking them as rookies after taking three national draft selections.

The Saints have picks 10, 16, 41, 51 and 69 but have room for only three selections.

In an ideal world the Saints might use picks 41 and 51 to move further up the order but at this stage have had no takers for those later picks.

So the Saints will march forward, aware there are a welter of quality key position talents around their two early selections as they also assess their need for half back run.

Players likely to be around the mark include Victorian key position forward Sam Gayfer and key backs Mitch Harris, Clancy Snell and Tyson Bradley as the Saints consider their options with picks 10 and 16.

In an ideal world the Saints might have had an early top ten pick but they will be spoiled for choice as they consider support for Max King and eventual successors for Callum Wilkie and Jack Silvagni.

The loss of Rowan Marshall means it is even more vital to find a support act to play alongside King, who continues to work hard on his rehab after late-season hamstring surgery.

The Saints have already committed to Stringer and have been able to secure him on a cheap-as-chips contract given there were no other suitors for the former Western Bulldogs, Essendon and GWS forward.

He kicked 48 goals last year and while he turns 33 next April, he will help provide more firepower in a forward line crying out for match-winning options.

Football boss Lenny Hayes made clear two weeks ago the Saints had committed to Stringer and agreed to terms.

“Jake has a proven ability to hit the scoreboard and we believe he can add another dimension to our forward line,” Hayes said.

“Jake’s experience and goal kicking ability will complement the talent we already have while giving us greater flexibility and depth in attack.”

St Kilda secured Brisbane academy midfielder Sam Marshall in the trade period with Hayes saying the club was excited by the options available in the national draft.

“We value this year’s draft, especially that first round. There’s some really good players around our picks that are going to help us moving forward,” he said.

“I think it will be a combination of best available and specific list needs. There’s some good key position players early in the draft. There’s also some good midfielders and half-backers we think could get to us as well. It’s pretty exciting for Saints fans, looking at that first round of the draft.”