Sebastian Ross Biography

St Kilda delists two-time best-and-fairest winner and former skipper Seb Ross after 13 seasons at the club, with the 31-year-old indicating he will look to continue his career at another club.

"These types of decisions are never easy to make, particularly given Seb’s calibre as both a person and a player which has yielded incredible respect from teammates and supporters alike. However, as we position our list for the future, this decision, albeit incredibly difficult, needed to be made," Saints footy boss Dave Mission said.

"Seb has given everything to St Kilda over the journey and has experienced more than his fair share of hardship throughout in terms of team success, but his commitment through it all has a defining feature of his career and character."

Seb Ross will remain at St Kilda until the end of 2023 after signing a two-year extension.

"A lot of Seb's work goes unnoticed externally, but ... we recognise just how important he is to our side on a number of fronts," Saints list manager James Gallagher said in a statement.

"More recently his versatility and willingness to play multiple roles for the team has become a really important aspect of his football."

Seb Ross takes to Instagram to explain his decision to miss the Saints' loss to Adelaide when he flew back to Victoria to be with his wife Marnie who last month gave birth to twins.

St Kilda will have co-captains in 2021 with Jack Steele joining incumbent leader Jarryn Geary as skippers of the club.

"To have 'Gears' alongside me is also really special. He's really taken me under his wing, and I've learned so much from him since joining the club. His leadership is second to none, not just his voice on-field, but also how he rallies the group off it," Steele said.

Defender Dougal Howard has also been fast-tracked straight into the seven-man leadership group as vice-captain alongside Tim Membrey.

Callum Wilkie is a first-time inductee and joins last year's members Seb Ross and Jack Billings.

Jarryn Geary will lead St Kilda for a fourth season in 2020 with recruit Bradley Hill a fresh face in the Saints' leadership group.

The six-man leadership group will again include Seb Ross as vice-captain as well as Tim Membrey, Jack Billings and Dylan Roberton.

Seb Ross claims his second Trevor Barker Award as St Kilda's best and fairest for the 2019 AFL season.

On an emotion-filled night where the Saints honoured club legend Danny Frawley, Ross (170 votes) backed up his efforts from 2017 ahead of Rowan Marshall (152) and Jack Steele (151).

In his typically selfless manner, Ross also paid tribute to Frawley who formed a close bond with the vice-captain and his teammates as a specialist coach in 2016 and 2017.

"Tonight's not about me, I think the night and rightly so has to be about Danny and what he brought to the footy club and the whole footy fraternity," Ross said.

"He's extended his olive branch a long way and he's influenced so many lives and he'll be sorely missed by many of us and he'll leave an everlasting impression on all of us."

Jarryn Geary will captain the Saints for a third straight season in 2019 with Seb Ross serving as vice-captain.

Former Swan Dan Hannebery has been included in the club's leadership group, while Jack Steven and wingman Jack Newnes have been left out.

Jarryn Geary will skipper St Kilda for a second season, but the veteran defender feels 2018 will be the true changing of the guard after the Nick Riewoldt era.

The 29-year-old will head a leadership group that has shrunk from eight last year to five in 2018 and includes Seb Ross, Jack Steven, Dylan Roberton and Jack Newnes.

"There's no doubt Nick was a leader of the club for a long time, and probably stood out in games when he was still probably the main man," Geary said.

"I guess (his retirement) will probably help me.

"I tried not to compete with him, he still led in his own way so it was a conscious effort not to compete with him.

"I won't have to do that this year.

"I think the five us will be the voice of the club. Nick obviously did that for a long time, but it's our turn to take over."

Seb Ross signs a three-year contract extension with St Kilda to remain at the club until the end of 2021.

"This is my sixth year at the Saints and I have really good relationships with all the football staff, and more importantly, the players at the club," Ross said.

"I've been able to really build great relationships with those guys over six years, so it was really a no-brainer to sign on for a few more years."

Seb Ross claims his first Trevor Barker award as St Kilda's best and fairest after a career-best season in 2017.

Ross finished with 159 votes ahead of gun backman Dylan Roberton (124) and captain Jarryn Geary (121).

Ross paid tribute to retirees Nick Riewoldt, Leigh Montagna, Sean Dempster and Sam Fisher, who finished up after the end of the 2016 season, for teaching him valuable lessons.

"The legacy you left on me, you taught me how to work as a young kid," Ross said.

"It probably took me three or four years to figure it out and those three or four years watching you guys each day in your own life, you just put your head down and your bums up and you worked hard, you're as loyal as they come, you're some of the greatest blokes I've ever met and I just wish you guys well in the future."

Jarryn Geary will be the St Kilda's new captain for 2017.

Geary takes over the role from Nick Riewoldt, who was skipper for 220 games. That tally ranks Riewoldt third on the all-time list for most VFL/AFL games captained, behind Carlton's Stephen Kernahan (226) and Essendon's Dick Reynolds (224).

Riewoldt, Leigh Montagna, Sean Dempster and Sam Gilbert took themselves out of contention for the leadership group, and thus the captaincy. Those players, known as the 'four elders', make up the Saints' over-30 contingent.

"Before that vote, Montagna, Riewoldt, Gilbert and Dempster got up and said 'Don't vote for us, we're out. Time for you blokes to drive it. We think you're ready'," Saints coach Alan Richardson said.

Midfielder Seb Ross, Dylan Roberton and Josh Bruce are St Kilda's newest official leaders. They join Geary, Jack Steven, David Armitage, Jack Newnes and Maverick Weller.

"If we had six players who got lots of votes and then there was a gap, we'd have six (in the leadership group). As it turned out, we had eight, because those guys were voted in really strongly," Richardson said.

With the competition for spots increasing in the Saints' midfield, Seb Ross says his focus for 2017 is to become more versatile.

"We recruited a few more mids over the off-season, so I'm just trying to get myself as fit as possible to potentially play a couple of different positions," Ross said.

"There are only three inside midfield spots, so whether (I spend more time) out on the wing or up forward a little bit, (I'm) just trying to adjust my game a little bit.

"You've got to be bloody fit to play on the wing so if we are playing a fair few mids and I have to play wing and forward, then I'll be suited to that role."

Fremantle coach Ross Lyon launches a passionate defence of his coaching style which has come under question amidst reports of player unrest at the club.

"There's players on this list that describe me as a father figure," Lyon said.

"So if you think my behaviour with those players can be so disparate from other players, I think you're living in gaga land.

"All I know is the teams I've coached – and you can only go on how they give effort – if what you were saying was true, it's impossible to give the effort and play consistent footy year after year like they do.

"Anyone who thinks that I would treat players any differently – it's naive at best, mischievous at worst."

With his team at the bottom of the ladder with a 0-8 record, Fremantle coach Ross Lyon denies the club is tanking.

"That's just talk," Lyon said.

"I just engage myself with the responsibility to the job. I sit here really comfortable.

"I don't think we have to tank - we've been trying our hardest and we're 0-8.

"That puts a pretty fine point on it, doesn't it?"

Seb Ross will remain at St Kilda until at least 2018 after signing a two-year contract extension.

“We've got a really exciting young list, we’ve made a fair bit of our games this year, so it was a pretty easy decision to sign on, knowing what’s in front of us,” Ross said.

Ross credited his impressive form in 2016 to being able to train consistently.

“I’ve been able to get some continuity in my game this year purely based on the pre-season I had," he said.

"I didn’t miss too many sessions. I was out there day-in, day-out, working with the players and the coaching staff.”

Seb Ross has undergone successful surgery for a high-grade hamstring tear suffered in the Saints' NAB Challenge win over Essendon.

Ross, who was not initially expected to have surgery, will miss 10-12 weeks.

St Kilda says the rash of hamstring injuries that has struck the club recently is more down to bad luck than poor management.

Seb Ross, Jack Billings, Farren Ray, Shane Savage and Dylan Roberton have all been hamstring victims during the Saints' pre-season.

"We have had a few pop up, but they've all been very different," St Kilda football manager Jamie Cox told radio station SEN.

"Nothing jumps out but the causes for these things can be many and varied.

"Regardless of injuries, we always analyse our program and I have total faith in our strength, conditioning and medical staff."

Seb Ross is set to miss 10-12 weeks after scans revealed the St Kilda midfielder suffered a high-grade hamstring tear in Saturday's NAB Challenge win over Essendon.

Ross badly damaged his left hamstring during the third term of the 50-point win but is not expected to require surgery.

St Kilda will provide Seb Ross more midfield opportunities in 2015 as the club prepares for life without departed champion Lenny Hayes.

"With Lenny moving on, Seb will get much more opportunity where he's at his best and that is on the inside," St Kilda coach Alan Richardson said.

"For all the understandable reasons, he hasn't quite imposed himself on games, but last year when he went back to the VFL he dominated.

"He'd made that step to being an AFL player playing in the VFL and you'd walk away from games and say, 'He's just too good for this now'.

"At times he had to play half-forward and while he has to grow that part of his game, that doesn't really suit him. He's an inside player and his pre-season has been very strong."

Seb Ross says he is keen to help fill the leadership void at the Saints created by Lenny Hayes' retirement.

"It would be something I would really need to work on," Ross said.

"I'm not one to really get up in front of the group and make a big speech but I think I try and show leadership with my actions and how hard I work but it's definitely something I want to aspire to."

St Kilda secures key youngsters Seb Ross, Jimmy Webster and Jack Newnes with new deals while Dylan Roberton has also signed a two-year contract extension with the club.

Coming from a basketball background, Seb Ross says switching to football has provided him with more opportunities.

"In basketball there's only a starting five and in footy there's a starting 18. I just thought there's more opportunity in footy so I went down that path," Ross said.

"Most of the players who have basketball backgrounds, they're good in tight space with their handballs. On the basketball court you're always working in traffic and have to find the right options."

Sebastian Ross makes his AFL debut for St Kilda at Docklands Stadium with 8 disposals (5 kicks and 3 handballs) and 4 tackles in a 128-point win over GWS.