Zaine Cordy has joined St Kilda as an unrestricted free agent, leaving the Western Bulldogs.
In an attempt to bolster the backline, the Saints are excited by the prospect of bringing in the key defender, who has been a regular in the Dogs' backline over the past few seasons.
Red, white and b̶l̶u̶e̶ black.
— St Kilda FC (@stkildafc) October 4, 2022
Welcome to the Saints, Zaine.
📰 → https://t.co/RwfeFwTBE7 pic.twitter.com/yhrkIa7lOn
Swapping the blue for the black, Cordy has joined St Kilda to ensure the longevity of his career, given that the Dogs recently signed intercepter Liam Jones.
Western Bulldogs will not receive any compensation for Cordy to offset the arrival of Jones.
The 25-year-old played 118 games for the Bulldogs, including the 2016 premiership, which he famously kicked the first goal for his side.
Initially selected as a father-son (Brian), Cordy was drafted in the 2014 Draft as an athletic defender, standing at 195cm tall but has been deployed all over the ground.
He said he is excited by the new opportunity at St Kilda and can't wait to get stuck in.
“I’m really happy to be joining the Saints,” Cordy said.
“While I loved my time at the Bulldogs and will forever be grateful for the opportunities they gave me, I’m confident the time is right for this next chapter of my career.
“I’m looking forward to meeting all my teammates and coaches after the break and getting stuck into a big pre-season.”
List boss James Gallagher also spoke to Cordy's assets and how they'll assist the Saints in 2023.
“We’re really pleased to welcome Zaine to St Kilda,” Gallagher said.
“We identified a need to bring in quality depth and coverage in our key positions, and we believe that Zaine will provide that.
“He’s played his best football as a genuine key defender and, importantly, he will add some height to our group while also giving the coaching staff some flexibility with how we use our talls next year.
“He’s a competitive guy and has a team-first attitude, demonstrated through his willingness to play various roles across the ground.
“While he’s achieved a lot in his young career, we feel confident he can go to another level here at the Saints.
“We look forward to welcoming Zaine to RSEA Park in the coming weeks.”
Lining up alongside Dougal Howard, Callum Wilkie and Josh Battle, Cordy will assist in preventing opposition scores.
The Saints are now building a formidable backline consisting of their four talls as well as Jack Sinclair, Nick Coffield and Ben Paton.
