MELBOURNE'S Michael Evans has decided to retire from football although he will be paid the final year of his contract in 2015.
Evans hadn't nominated for the NAB AFL Draft when nominations closed on Wednesday and has informed the club of his decision.
The contracted midfielder rejected the Demons attempt to remove him from the senior list at the end of the season and place him on the rookie list, a decision the club made in order to free up a third draft pick next Thursday.
Melbourne will honour the final year of Evans' contract and his payments will be included in the club's total player payments for 2015.
The decision to make Evans a rookie was not unusual with several other clubs making similar moves during the exchange period.
Gold Coast's Greg Broughton finished 10th in the club best and fairest last season but has accepted being delisted then re-rookied during this exchange period.
The Demons did the same thing with Neville Jetta at the end of 2013 and Jetta had his best season at the club last year, playing 16 games and earning a two-year contract.
However Evans, who is studying, has decided he did not want to continue as a player on the rookie list.
His senior opportunities would likely have remained strong if his form warranted selection, particularly given the fact that Jack Trengove is likely to be placed on the club's long-term injury list in 2015.
22-year-old Evans played 16 games with the Demons in four years, battling back and soft tissue injuries. He was elevated to the senior list in 2013 after being initially selected as a rookie in 2011.
He was on a two-year contract that ran until the end of 2015.
The club delisted him at the second list lodgement deadline and said at the time it would consider offering him a rookie list position if he nominated for the draft.
Evans' retirement along with Dom Barry's decision to walk away from football and follow his passion for indigenous issues means Melbourne will now take four selections to the draft with picks No.2, 3, 40 and 53.
It has also used pick No. 42 on father-son selection Billy Stretch, a similar type of player to Barry.
