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Sport Nation
No player has bet on himself better than Wanganeen-Milera
Gerard Whateley • August 19th, 2025 7:30 pm
The Nasiah Wanganeen Milera re-signing was a reminder of what makes the AFL world culturally different and a little bit special.
In the NBA, there’s nothing more exciting than when a star player changes teams. Here, there’s nothing more exciting than when a star player remains with his club, and we should cherish it.
There’s an entire arm of the industry geared toward the trade market and all the breathless possibilities of player movement… but it remains the reality here that the vast majority of players stay with their clubs.
When news broke yesterday of Wanganeen-Milera’s decision to remain with the Saints, it felt like the time Chris Grant stayed at the Bulldogs.
Admittedly, Grant’s re-signing became folklore for the 20 cents a young fan sent him in a desperate plea to remain.
Wanganeen-Milera’s will always be notable as the first $2 million contract. So we shouldn’t be entirely misty-eyed.
But for a club that needs hope, the 22-year-old was the player they couldn’t lose.
How do you build toward something successful if your best player departs at the first available opportunity?
It was a torturous way to stay.
When Wanganeen Milera burst from the middle and kicked that remarkable goal on Friday night, how did St Kilda fans deal with the inner conflict… the sheer joy of what he is, balanced with the anxiety that he soon might be gone.
In the rooms post-match, every kid wanted the photo with 'Nas'.
When the Saints offered the 7-dollar membership for 7 days in honour of Nas, the system crashed under the demand.
This was a club and fan base all in on its prodigy… and there’s nothing purer than that.
His indecision across the course of the year might have been torturous, but it was always going to be instantly forgiven should he stay.
And so it was on the airwaves yesterday.
No player has bet on himself better than Wanganeen-Milera in his fourth season.
The first offer started in the vicinity of $800,000.
By the time the deal was done, he commanded $2 million.
His match-winning deeds against Melbourne likely earned him an extra $400,000.
Across the course of the season, he evolved from a silky half-back flanker to an elite midfielder and match-winning forward.
When the lists are done in October, he’ll be a top 10 player in the competition.
It’ll be a surprise if he’s not a permanent fixture in those lists for a decade.
You could take the view that the Saints just paid $2 million to recruit their own player.
But this was the deal they had to do, and then figure the rest out later.
Nas was the referendum … talk about belief in what you’re building all you like … if he’d left, that would have been impossible to sell.
Actions are everything… and Nas believes enough to see how the next two years unfold.
Can St Kilda move the needle with Tom De Koning rucking to Nasia Wanganeen-Milera and kicking to Max King?
