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Flanders reveals reason for nominating St Kilda
SEN • October 8th, 2025 5:41 pm
Sam Flanders is officially a Saint, with St Kilda and Gold Coast securing a deal to shift the midfielder back to Victoria.
Having been pushed out of the midfield mix under Damien Hardwick, Flanders opted to leave the Suns with two years remaining on his contract, with the Saints offloading Pick 7 in the upcoming National Draft to secure his services.
“It’s definitely been a crazy couple of weeks,” Flanders told AFL Trade Radio.
“A lot of mixed emotions, obviously leaving a lot of great mates but definitely the excitement of getting back home, back to family and friends and the excitement of the St Kilda Football Club.”
Drafted to the Suns in 2019, Flanders was an integral part of the club’s growth over the last six seasons, playing in his first ever finals series this season.
Although admitting that the club is trending nicely for the future, Flanders opted out of the club in search of a role that best suited his ideal role at AFL level.
“I think Gold Coast are definitely heading in the right direction. For me, the main reason was the opportunity,” Flanders admitted.
“I see myself as more of an inside midfielder, and don’t get me wrong, Gold Coast have got arguably one of the best midfields in the comp, so I’m definitely not sitting here saying I should have been playing ahead of some of those boys. They are obviously very talented and had great years.
“The biggest thing for me was around opportunity, and obviously I’m from Melbourne so getting back to friends and family was a big factor as well.”
Throughout the process of finding a home ahead of 2026, the 24-year-old met with four Victorian clubs in Essendon, Melbourne, St Kilda and Carlton.
While the Blues dropped out of the race rather early, both Melbourne and Essendon remained in the hunt for Flanders’ services until the midfielder nominated the Saints days prior.
“It was a very tough decision,” he said.
“St Kilda for me was the connection I had off the first meeting. It was very strong, and you look at the list, some of the boys they’ve brought in and also who they are looking to bring in as well, it’s very exciting.
“They’re in the right direction, so that was a big factor in joining the Saints.”
One of the biggest factors for selecting the Saints was the club’s re-signing of superstar Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera, who, despite being out-of-contract with offers on the table from his home state of South Australia, signed on for a further two seasons.
“Absolutely (it played a part). Obviously, Nas staying… he is a superstar - one of the best in the comp, so for him to stay and choose the Saints over the other teams going back Adelaide way obviously means the club is in the right direction.
“He sees something there and I’m so excited to play alongside him. Playing against him, he was a superstar so I can’t wait to work alongside him.”
Flanders joins Jack Silvagni and Tom De Koning as the newest first-team members at St Kilda, while the club continues its ambitious Trade Period, with deals for Liam Ryan and Leek Aleer still to come.
