St Kilda star Jack Steven to take ‘extended break’ from footy

Jack Steven will take an “extended break” from the AFL, St Kilda says.

The star midfielder has been dealing with mental health issues, which the club made public in February.

He was the Saints best player against Adelaide last Saturday night.

“The club and Jack have been working on managing his health and well-being over many months,” St Kilda footy boss Simon Lethlean said in a statement.

“The best option at present for Jack to fully overcome his challenges is to take an extended break away from football.

“We don’t have an exact time-frame on how long that will be but the club will continue to provide as much support as possible.

“We ask again that Jack be given the time and privacy to deal with this matter.”

Tom Morris told Sportsday that Steven had trained fully this week but the Saints were taking a conservative approach.

“We know he’s been struggling for a while, but my understanding is he’s had a significantly bad week for reasons that are personal to him,” Morris said.

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