RETIRING Fremantle favourite Paul Hasleby says he agonised over whether to play on next season as success beckons for the club he helped build.

Hasleby, an All-Australian and four-time Ross Glendinning Medallist, hopes to add to the two AFL finals he has played in his 207 games, and he will end his decorated career at the conclusion of Fremantle’s finals campaign.

Teammates past and present gathered at Fremantle Oval on Monday to hear Hasleby announce that, while he felt he could play on next season, the time was right to step aside.   

“I know where this club’s come from in the past and I certainly know where it’s going,” Hasleby said. “It’s going in the right direction, so that made it even harder.

“I just thought for myself and my young family - we’ve got a baby due at the end of November - I think the time’s right to step aside and let the young guys come through and take it forward.

“It’s in a much better position than when I first arrived at the club and I think the guys that have been around can be very proud of that achievement, that we’ve taken it forward to this point.

“I’m very proud of the way I’m going to go out and I’m very happy with that.”

On the eve of his 200th game in round 13 this season, Hasleby said he hoped to play on in 2011, but as his career nears its end, the 29-year-old said he leaves Fremantle on good terms.
 
Hasleby was involved in protracted contract negotiations at the end of 2009, with the club unwilling to offer him a two-year deal.

“I had some great discussions with the football club today, [and] I’m going out my way, which a lot of players don’t get the opportunity to do,” he said.

“It was always a possibility, next year. While I probably thought that I could play another year, I‘ve always prided myself on my performance and to keep it at a certain level for most of my career I’m very proud of.

“There’s every opportunity that might not have been there [next year] and the level might have dropped. I didn’t want to finish football that way, after seeing a lot of teammates and players around the league go a year too long.”

Hasleby delivered a heartfelt address to his teammates on Monday and was emotional when thanking his fiancée, Nicole, and his family for their support throughout his career.

The midfielder has been cleared to train this week after missing Fremantle’s loss to Hawthorn last Saturday with a knee injury, and he hopes to be selected for Friday night’s clash with Carlton at Subiaco, which will decide if Fremantle earns a home elimination final.

Media and coaching roles are certain to keep Hasleby involved in the game at the top level, but he said finishing his playing career was foremost in his mind at the moment.

Hasleby said it was his ability to keep reinventing himself that had allowed him to play more than 200 games, and it would hold him in good stead as a teacher.

“I feel I’ve got a degree in football,” he said. “I’ve always been able to stay ahead of the game in some way shape or form.

“I feel as a football coach I do have a fair bit to offer to a lot of the young players [and] it’s certainly an area I’ll be exploring.

“When you’re in the AFL you’ve got to keep on reinventing yourself and coming up with new ways to stay in the team and I’ve done that for as long as I can.

“I feel like I have a lot more to give to AFL and football in general.”