Tom De Koning says Carlton skipper Patrick Cripps played a key role in convincing him to stay with the Blues.
"When it all started popping off in the media, about what was happening with my future, he was the first one to come to me and make sure I was all good with it. He pretty much said that he's been through it all before and told me it's not necessarily an easy decision to make," De Koning said.
"He said it was different for everyone and he just wanted to make sure I made the right decision for me, given where I was at. For me, it took a little bit of time to figure out what I wanted and where I was at. I ended up making the right decision for myself and he was a massive part of that."