Jason Castagna Biography

Jason Castagna announces his shock retirement from the AFL at the age of 26, citing a lack of desire to continue at the highest level.

"This game is such a demanding one physically and mentally, and something I have given my all to since I first walked in the doors here and for the years before that," he said.

"Now that I cannot give that same energy, it has made me realise that I would be letting the boys and the Club down if I just coasted through and did not give it my all until the end, which has led me to this call."

Jason Castagna is set to miss the start of the 2023 season with a hamstring injury sustained during training.

Jason Castagna signs a new two-year deal with Richmond to remain at the club until the end of 2019.

"We are really pleased with Jason's ongoing development and his work-rate, both on and off the track," Tigers list manager Dan Richardson said.

"His pressure around the ball is a highlight and his brand of footy was very much aligned to the team success this year."

Dan Butler says he has weekly post-game competitions with housemate Jason Castagna on who comes out on top with pressure points.

"That's the first thing I look for when I go and see 'Leppa', and that will give me a good indication of how I'm going," Butler said.

"We were having a bit of a competition about who could get the highest and we were pretty even overall."

However, teammate Daniel Rioli goes into this week's Grand Final with the most pressure points for the season among the Richmond small forwards, registering 979.7 to Butler's 897.1 and Castagna's 824.1.

"Rioli is normally beating us in it, so we don't really want to compete with him. He usually pressures a lot better than us," Butler said.

Jason Castagna is the round 19 NAB AFL Rising Star nominee after kicking 3 goals from 16 disposals against Gold Coast at Metricon Stadium.

Castagna has started each of his three AFL seasons on the rookie list and been elevated every time, but five matches across his first two seasons – in a variety of roles from defence to the wing and up forward – left him vulnerable going into 2017.

Instead, the Northern Knights and Warrandyte Bloods product forced his way into senior calculations for round one as a defensive forward and hasn't missed a match.

"It's probably recognising what my strengths were and playing to them a bit more. You can always look at your weaknesses and work at them," he said.

"Being on the rookie list at the start of each year gave me a bit of motivation to want to play well and get the call-up. But I've really loved playing footy at Richmond and haven't seen it as a tough journey."

Rookie Jason Castagna is selected in Richmond's round one side for 2017 after being promoted to the club's senior list.

Jason Castagna makes his AFL debut for Richmond at the MCG with 11 disposals (6 kicks and 5 handballs), 2 marks and 2 tackles in a 35-point loss to Port Adelaide.

Richmond selects Jason Castagna with pick No.29 in the 2014 NAB AFL Rookie Draft.

"Jason played for Vic Metro in the Under-18s Carnival and he will provide rebound from half-back," Tigers recruiting manager Francis Jackson said.

"His ability to run and carry the footy in the Carnival was really good and he can make something happen with his speed and lateral movement."