I never wanted to leave: King
YOUNG Gold Coast key forward Ben King says he never really contemplated joining his twin brother Max at St Kilda and is excited to sign a two-year extension at the Suns.
It was widely accepted that King would return to Melbourne to link up with Max. But the 19-year-old, who has played 14 games and earned a Rising Star nomination, said he was loving his time with the Suns and had confidence in the list build.
“It was always Gold Coast for me,” said King, with the deal locking him in until the end of the 2022 season.
“I said from the start that I would wait until the end of the year to make a decision … to be able to put an extra two years on my contract I’m excited with what’s to come.”
He said Max, who is yet to make his debut due to injury, was “stoked” for him.
“We talk about that sort of stuff a fair bit and he took it really well and was happy for me to sign on.”
Suns chief executive Mark Evans said King’s extension was a show of faith in the future of the club, which only managed three wins for the season to finish last.
“It might have been one of the most speculated contract extensions that I’ve seen for a young player so we are pleased that we can get it done well ahead of the 2020 season,” Evans said. EDDIE Betts said he was almost in tears when he walked back into Carlton.
One of the greatest small forwards in AFL history has made an emotional homecoming, traded back to the Blues after six successful seasons at Adelaide.
Betts flew from Adelaide yesterday and the trade was confirmed hours later, with the Blues giving up a future fourth-round pick for the 32-year-old. He has joined Carlton on a one-year deal and is likely to return to the No. 19 guernsey.
“It was mixed emotions — good positive emotions. It still hasn’t sunk in,” Betts said on the ground at Ikon Park.
“I knew we were talking about it for a little while, but for it to finally happen … I’m really emotional walking back onto this ground. I almost started crying.”
Betts said it was also a big wrench to leave his Adelaide teammates and the Crows fans. He noted the Crows had been through a lot in his time there, with the death of coach Phil Walsh and their tumultuous 2017 Grand Final loss to Richmond.
“The emotions are still running through my system. The love and support I’ve been shown by Adelaide and the players in particular — we’ve been through a lot,” he said. “I’m still really connected to those players and we’re going to be friends for life. Just speaking about it is making me emotional because we were so tightknit, and to leave that group is really sad.”
But one subject that was off-limits was the infamous 2018 Adelaide pre-season camp — a key catalyst for their many problems over the past two years.
“I’m not here to talk about the camp. I’m just here to talk about coming back to where it all started,” he said.
The Carlton life member played 184 games for the Blues before joining the Crows at the end of 2013 and playing another 132 games there.
The freakish small forward, a threetime All Australian, has kicked 600 goals and has won the goal-of-the-year award four times.
New Carlton coach David Teague was an assistant at Adelaide and Betts said he played his best football when Teague was in charge of the forward line.