FORMER Saint Jason Gram will be playing for coach Jason Akermanis’ North Albury squad in the Ovens & Murray Football League in 2013.
But his ambition to return to the AFL remains strong in spite of Akermanis saying that “(Gram) probably realises he’s done at (the) AFL level.”
While acknowledging that a return to the AFL was beyond his control, he was candid in his asessment in an an interview with Albury-Wodonga paper The Border Mail.
“If AFL came up — if teams still wanted to have a look — I’m open to that but all I can do for now is play the best footy I can for North Albury,” said Gram.
“I believed I had a good three or four years of AFL footy left in me and, hopefully, I can still play at that AFL standard.”
Gram has signed a one-year contract to play for The Hoppers alongside playing coach Akermanis. The two were briefly team mates back in 2003 when Gram played two seniors games for the Brisbane Lions.
Keeping his options open Gram he also expressed an interest in switching codes with a move the NFL following the trail blazed by Darren Bennett, Ben Graham and Sav Rocca.
“I’ve always dreamt of giving the NFL a crack after finishing in the AFL. It’s just a pity it came a bit sooner than expected,” Gram said.
“I’ve had a few sessions with Ben Graham, and there is no better person to learn off.”
“So I’ll do what I can to learn the craft and hopefully one day make my way over there and give it a crack.”
Gram, 28, played 152 games for the Saints before his career came to a sudden and ignominious end on October 30 last year after he was arrested by police for stalking and breaching an intervention order. The Saints, tired of a series of incidents that featured repeated issues with the club over his behaviour towards a woman that was believed to be his ex-girlfriend, promptly dropped the veteran defender.
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