Hillside’s move into the Essendon District Football League premier division will come without two of the side’s biggest names.
Captain Zak Wunhym and full forward Josh Covelli are both set to remain in division 1 with Tullamarine announcing the pair had signed with the club.
The Demons announced the signing of the pair as they try to rise up the ladder after a tough 2025.
Covelli has been one of the premier players in the division 1 competition since joining the Sharks from Burnside Heights.
He has kicked 100 goals in each of the past two seasons, including kicking his 100th this year in the grand final.
Covelli won the 2024 Hutchison Medal as the best player in the division 1 competition in 2024 and gave opposition defenders a headache every week.
Those same defenders will again have to face him next year with the decision not to test himself in premier division.
Wunhym captained the Sharks to their breakthrough division 1 premiership this year.
He played for the Sharks since 2021 and played a key role for the side.
The Sharks have also lost another premiership player in Lachy Henson, who has joined East Sunbury.
Henson said in East Sunbury’s announcement that the club’s energy and direction really appealed to him.
Sharks coach Mo Kaakour previously told Star Weekly after the premiership that he expected some players to not make the move to premier division.
