THERE’S something in the water down at Sandringham. The bayside club will enter standalone status for the first time this century in 2026, having cut its AFL alignment to St Kilda. With close ties to community clubs and stakeholders, and nearly of 100 years of history, the Zebras have embarked on a monumental list build.

>> RECRUITMENT DRIVE: South Adelaide | Subiaco

The club revamp under CEO Mark Wheeler has brought former premiership player Daniel Ward back to Trevor Barker Beach Oval (TBBO) as head coach, while captain Blake Watson was the first player to re-sign for 2026. A further 14 players have recommitted, complimenting an influx of 18 fresh faces from various talent pools.

Though, at the heart of Sandringham’s signing spree has been a clear commitment to the community and region, targeting young local talent to take the club forward. The Zebs sparked their recruitment drive by garnering expressions of interest last year, which according to legendary footy journo Paul Amy, garnered nearly 100 applications off the bat.

VFL: Sandringham put out a call yesterday for prospective players to register for stage one of the preseason – and received 97 applications in 17 hours. Put that with $100k from past players and 1929 membership, and the Zebras are off to a strong start for 2026. pic.twitter.com/GlYOEJ6Ykb

— Paul Amy (@PaulAmy375) September 11, 2025

Sandringham even pushed a ’12 days of Zebs Christmas’ campaign, whereby the club announced a new signing each day during December. There’s more to come, too, with around 70 players in preseason attendance. After one long-standing VFL club disbanded last year, it would truly be a gift to see another rise from a three-win season to become a state league powerhouse once more.

We outline Sandringham’s signings with a breakdown of where they’ve come from and what they’ll offer.

NEW SIGNINGS (18)

EX-AFL (1): Kynan Brown (Melbourne)

VFL/STATE LEAGUE (12): Liam Coghlan (Northern Bullants), Brodie Findlay (North Adelaide), Jhett Haeata (Richmond), Ben Hopkins (North Melbourne), Mitchell Kirkwood-Scott (Casey Demons), Hamish Murphy (Williamstown), Tom O’Rourke (Williamstown), Nathan Philactides (Box Hill), Lachlan Riley (Frankston), Andreas Stefanakis (Box Hill), Bode Stevens (North Melbourne), Noah Yze (Casey Demons)

TALENT LEAGUE (2): Brodie Atkins (Gippsland Power), Adrian Cole (Dandenong Stingrays)

VAFA/LOCAL (3): Darcy Chirgwin (Uni Blues), Nathan Scollo (Murrumbeena), Jesse Wadeisha (Manly Warringah)

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Sandringham Football Club (@sandyzebs)

There would be a sense of nostalgia for long-time Zebs fans looking at some of the new signings. After being delisted by Melbourne, Kynan Brown lands at TBBO where his father Nathan played 17 games through the Dees’ early-2000s alignment. Brown senior will serve as an assistant coach in 2026.

Liam Coghlan has also arrived via the Northern Bullants. His father Adam is in the Zebs’ team of the century having played in two flags across his career. Coghlan junior played 16 games for the Ants last year and having established himself at the level, shapes as a key cog in next year’s backline.

Another familiar name is Noah Yze, the son of Richmond AFL coach Adem. After a breakthrough season with Casey, he is one of 12 players to have switched to Sandy via other VFL clubs. He’s also among the many recent Talent League graduates the club has landed, from several regions.

2025 Morrish Medal winner Brodie Atkins leads that category and has all the hallmarks of a rugged state league midfielder. Sandringham Dragons graduates like 2024 premiership captain Brodie Findlay, speedster Jhett Haeata, and Mitchell Kirkwood-Scott have also returned to familiar surroundings.

Then there’s Adrian Cole, who was overlooked as a St Kilda Next Generation Academy member and switched Talent League clubs to Dandenong last year. VAFA recruit Darcy Chirgwin was also part of two Talent League regions (Sandringham and Geelong) and makes his return to TBBO.

While it’s all well and good to support the local region and boost its talent pool with state league opportunities, the squad’s ability to compete must also be considered. That’s where the 15 re-signings and bulk of hungry VFL recruits will prosper, adding a hard edge while helping the young talent shine.

RE-SIGNINGS (15)

STAYING: Leon Alao, Jack Cheep, Josh Hutchings, William Johnson, Andrew Mathieson, Charlie Orchard, Jet Peckett, Liam Purcell, Charlie Rozenes, Mitch Ryan, Ben Seers, Ben Stephenson, Lachlan Voss, Blake Watson, Ethan Williams

The investment in local youth is a continuing theme among Sandringham’s re-signings. The likes of Lachlan Voss, Charlie Rozenes, and Ethan Williams are recent Dragons graduates who have had a taste of VFL footy, and will continue to bring the club forward.

On the flipside, there aren’t too many players who have been at the Zebras for longer than two years. Watson is one, while the likes of Andrew Mathieson, Liam Purcell, and Mitch Ryan can lay claim to at least two seasons of experience across multiple clubs.

With the team’s ability to compete against hardened and AFL-aligned clubs in mind, that places plenty of responsibility on their established players. Signings like Coghlan, Hamish Murphy, Lachlan Riley, and Bode Stevens will help in that regard with their greater VFL experience, and desire for greater opportunities.