FORMER Melbourne-listed player Mitch White says he had no hesitation to play at Casey Demons in 2018.

White, who played four matches for Melbourne from 2015-17, said the dream was still alive to play in the AFL, but some close bonds forged at Melbourne and Casey made it an easy choice for him to stay at the VFL club.

“I just want to have a crack, give what I can to the club, play some good footy and hopefully win a flag – we’ve got an unbelievable list at Melbourne and a lot of good young players at Casey, so the only way is up from here,” he told melbournefc.com.au.

“It’s all up in the air, but I’ll just put my best foot forward, as they say and as cliché as it is.

“I’m not too keen at waking up [for work] at five o’clock for the rest of my life, but I’m happy doing what I’m doing at the moment – it’s a little bit tougher, but I just love having a kick.”

White conceded it was “pretty disappointing” to be delisted, but he was realistic about where he was at. 

“I knew it was coming. I had an injury at the end of the year – I had a pretty decent hamstring injury – so I knew it was coming and I came to terms with it,” he said.

“I was just chomping at the bit to start running around and having a kick again. I was bleeding when I couldn’t play in the finals and I’ve put it behind me, although I’d love to get back there.

“I’m really keen to get stuck into the season, play some good footy and wherever that takes me – we’ll go from there.”

White said there was still pressure to perform for Casey in 2018, but not like it was when he was at Melbourne.

“When I was playing at Melbourne, I wouldn’t say I was uptight, but I was always worried about performing. It’s no different to VFL level, but the expectation changes a little bit – not anything less as such, but it’s just coming from a different angle,” he said.

“I’m probably seen as more of a senior player – even though I’m 21 – but we’ve got a lot of young fellas down here. Knowing the game plan at Melbourne, I’d like to think I’d fit in pretty well and they’d expect just as much of me, if not more, [because I was] at Melbourne.

“I’m expecting myself to play at a pretty high level and I’ll hold myself to good standards, which ‘Twig’ (Jade Rawlings) will hold me to – he’s pretty good like that. I’m just keen to get into the game.”