- Tarryn Thomas is assessing his options over a return to play football
- The ex-North Melbourne midfielder was sacked by the club in 2024
- He had been accused of several breaches on the league’s misconduct rules
Former North Melbourne star Tarryn Thomas and his lawyer are reportedly working alongside the AFL Players’ Association (AFLPA) to assess his future in the sport.
It comes as the 25-year-old has recently been involved in a police investigation after he alleged that he and a friend were held hostage at gunpoint earlier this month, according to Channel Nine.
He also claimed that the individuals, who had allegedly held them hostage, had demanded they sign over the papers to his car and give them thousands in cash.
Thomas is understood to have now retracted his police statement following the alleged incident.
Thomas has struggled to find a club ever since he was sacked by the Kangaroos in 2024, subsequently missing the whole of last season. It came after the AFL imposed an 18-match ban on the 25-year-old over multiple misconduct breaches.
At the beginning of the 2025 season, Thomas had attempted to join up with the Northern Bullants in the VFL while other sides were also interested in signing him to their roster.
Former AFL player Tarryn Thomas is looking to make a return to play Australian rules football
Thomas has been snubbed by several clubs in the past year after he was sacked by North Melbourne in 2024 over a breach of the clubs condudct rules
The footy player had also been told by the AFL that he could play at state-league level but only for a club that is not an affiliate of an AFL side.
The Bullants had expressed a desire to sign him but received widespread backlash over the move. The footy club’s board of directors subsequently decided against adding the 25-year-old to their list.
In February, Thomas also came close to joining up with Western Australia side, Swan Districts, but they too announced publicly that they would be snubbing the midfielder – who had moved to Perth in order to begin a two-week trial with the side.
The Swans then decided that they would not be moving forward with their attempts to sign Thomas after multiple members of their women’s side had expressed their displeasure at the move.
A sponsor at Port Melbourne also stated that it would not accept his addition to the club’s list, even though the side had given consideration to signing the 25-year-old.
Thomas is understood to be ineligible to register for the 2025 mid-season draft. The Herald Sun adds that the league has not made a decision on whether he will be allowed to return in 2026.
Now, his legal team and the AFLPA are understood to be working to assess whether he will ever be given the green light to return to play AFL footy.
Sources close to him say, according to The Herald Sun, that the AFL’s move to allow him to return to state-level footy came at a timely point, giving him only a few options at VFL level.
Thomas is now working with the AFLPA and his lawyers to assess his furture in the sport
He recently came close to a move to WAFL side Swan Districts and was in talks with VFL club, the Northern Bullants
The Herald Sun also reports that while the footy player accepted a payout from the Kangaroos following his dismissal, he was forced to sell a luxury car and apartment, worth around $100,000.
He has since turned to religion, heading down to a local Sunday service and has been keeping fit in the gym.
Thomas was signed to North Melbourne back in 2018 as pick No 8 in the National Draft.
He would go on to make his debut the following year during the Kangaroos’ 21-point loss to the Brisbane Lions in Round Two.
The 25-year-old received a Rising Star nomination following a game against Gold Coast later that season, where he booted two majors.
During his time with the club, he would return 56 goals across across 69 appearances.
