Chris Newman simply wasn’t ready to hang up the boots at the end of this season.

Some encouraging late-season form, trust in his body, and a continued hunger to be a member of the current Richmond playing squad were all factors in the former Tiger skipper’s decision to sign a one-year contract extension.

“It didn’t really sit comfortably with me to walk away now.  It just feels like we’ve got too much unfinished business,” Newman said.

“I feel like I’m still required at the Club, which is a really important thing for me, so I’m very much looking forward to it.”

Newman has always expressed his willingness to play on for a 15th AFL season, but a mid-season calf injury cast some doubt in his mind.

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He missed four games from rounds 9-12, and another week with a groin injury in Round 14, however he has played in each of Richmond’s last eight wins.

“It was probably a different mindset when I strained my calf.  I didn’t play a great game, and I was probably at my lowest point there,” Newman said.

“I thought that realistically I probably wouldn’t go around again.

“But things have changed.  It’s probably not so much our win-loss record, but just the way we’re playing is really encouraging, and I desperately want to be a part of that.

“Body-wise, was a factor too.  I needed to be confident that my body could hold up, and I’m confident it will.  I’m feeling pretty good, along with the rest of the group.”

Newman will become the 13th player in Richmond history to reach the 250-game milestone this week, joining the likes of Kevin Bartlett, Francis Bourke, Kevin Sheedy, Matthew Richardson and Dale Weightman.

“I feel extremely blessed to have played 250 games at this Club,” he said.

“It’s something I’ll reflect on when I’m finished, but if anything, just having it this week, I’m not really thinking about it too much.

“I’m just solely focussed on what we have to do this week, and I’m really excited by it.”