WILLIAMSTOWN defender Marty Hore is set to secure a second chance at Melbourne when the pre-season supplemental selection period (SSP) opens at the end of this month. 

The 27-year-old played 14 games for the Demons – all in his debut season in 2019 – across a three-year stint at the club before being delisted at the end of 2021 after he missed that season due to a knee reconstruction. 

AFL.com.au understands that Melbourne is planning to add Hore to the rookie list when the SSP opens on November 27, after the VFL star didn’t nominate for next week’s AFL Draft. 

The Bendigo product recently met with Demons coach Simon Goodwin and list manager Tim Lamb and is understood to have informed Williamstown of the opportunity. 

After making a strong start to his AFL career, Hore was considered very unlucky not to secure another contract in 2021 but has been working towards another chance in the 24 months since then.

The 190cm intercept defender joined North Melbourne's VFL program after leaving the Demons and trialled for a spot on the rookie list during the 2022 SSP, before being named in the VFL Team of the Year.

After moving to Williamstown last summer, Hore put his name back on the radar of AFL clubs ahead of the Mid-Season Rookie Draft before being named in the VFL Team of the Year for the second straight year after winning another best and fairest.

Hore initially landed a shot in the AFL at the age of 22 after winning back-to-back best and fairest awards for Collingwood's VFL side before being selected at pick No.56 in the 2018 AFL Draft. 

Melbourne tracked Hore during his time in the TAC Cup and across a winding journey in the VFL that is expected to result in a return to the AFL. 

Williamstown also recruited former Melbourne and Carlton key defender Oscar McDonald during a targeted recruitment drive last pre-season, but is now set to be without both of them in 2024 after Fremantle signed the Seagulls' other star backman as a delisted free agent.