Essendon captain Jobe Watson has made firm his commitment to the club, signing a three-year deal that will see him remain at the Bombers until 2013.

Watson says it was an easy decision to make and was delighted to re-sign with the club he grew up supporting.

“It was an obvious decision to make,” he said.
""It was really just a case of waiting for the right time to get offered a new contract and then get the deal done and it is obviously really pleasing to get it done so early.
“It will hopefully mean I will be a one-club player so I can be here and grow with this team.”
Jobe Watson has signed on. Now it's your turn. Sign up as a member today by calling 1300 46 26 62 for the new 3-game membership (v Geelong Rd 12, v Carlton Rd 19, v Collingwood Rd 20). 
The contract is of particular significance to Watson and Essendon supporters alike given the family connection with the club.

“It is nice to have a family connection with the club and it obviously means a lot to my family and it is an important thing for the fans as well,” he said.

“I am lucky to play at the same club as my dad and now I can hopefully do that for the entirety of my career.”

The three-year deal will allow Watson to continue to develop alongside a young group of Bombers who he believes will take the club to its next premiership.

“It is really hard to know when your premiership window is because there are so many variables, but the length of the contract means I will be at this club with the current group players and we will have played a fair bit of footy together over the next three years,” he said.

“You can never really know when you are going to have an opportunity but hopefully we can experience it together in the next few years.”
Click here to bid on Jobe Watson's match-worn guernsey.

Essendon CEO Ian Robson says the club was delighted to secure a player of Watson’s calibre.

“He is an outstanding young man and I am just delighted that he gets this vote of confidence from the club so early on in his captaincy tenure,” Robson said.

“The Watson family name will forever be a part of the DNA of this football club and I am just delighted that the journey continues.”
Robson says the signing comes at a pivotal time for the club with Watson set to become the face of Essendon, following the recent departures of club legends including Kevin Sheedy, James Hird and Matthew Lloyd.

“The mantle of leadership that has been assumed by Matthew Knights two years ago and now Jobe, becomes crucial as we come through this period of transition and re-establishing the face of the new Essendon dressing room,” he said.

“It was also pivotal because anyone out of contract this year of stature, experience or credibility was always going to come under the eye of the expansion teams – whether it was Gold Coast this year or GWS a year later.

“Ultimately there were a number of factors in terms of our retention strategy in coming through this period so it made Jobe’s signature really important and we are really delighted to have secured a player of his stature.”
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