Zach Tuohy is poised to break Jim Stynes’s AFL appearances record for an Irish player in 2023 after signing a new one-year contract with Geelong.
The Portlaoise man made his 250th AFL appearance as the Cats beat the Sydney Swans in the grand final, leaving him just 14 games behind Melbourne great Stynes.
The victory also meant that Tuohy and teammate Mark O’Connor emulated Tadhg Kennelly, who was previously the only Irishman to win a Premiership.
Tuohy, who turns 33 in December and was previously on the books of the Carlton Blues, is one of five players to commit their futures to the club, with Tom Hawkins, Isaac Smith also signing one-year extensions while Tom Atkins and Zach Guthrie have been locked in for another two years.
He is currently enjoying his first visit home since before the pandemic and has been afforded a hero’s welcome in Portlaoise following his Premiership success.
“We are thrilled that all five of these players have re-committed to our football program for next season and beyond,” Geelong’s general manager of football Simon Lloyd told the club’s website.
“Players like Tom Atkins and Zach Guthrie are key pillars of our medium to long term future, and as we saw this year, both players demonstrated a drive and a determination to keep improving, which has been a feature of both of their careers since they arrived at the club. Both Tom and Zach also contribute significantly off-field to the fabric of Geelong with the quality of their leadership and character.
“Zach and Isaac, among a long list of players at our club, are key reasons why we have been able to achieve what we have this year. Both are experienced big-game players on the field and they drive standards across the club off of it, but equally, they are exceptional people who we are very proud to call Geelong players.”
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