XAVIER Richards’ decision to walk out on Sydney has backfired spectacularly, with the Grand Final utility left without an AFL club after the rookie draft.

Richards has seemingly ended his own career, with the 23-year-old last month rejecting a two-year contract from the Swans in pursuit of a Melbourne club whose offer never came.

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Richards, the brother of recently-retired Swans great Ted Richards, cited Sydney’s cost of living as the main factor in his decision to quit the club.

But he attracted little interest in the exchange period, was ignored during the delisted free agency window and wasn’t offered a rookie lifeline.

Richards managed only two games in his first two years with the Swans, but played the last 10 matches this year and kicked 13 goals in a run of form good enough for the Swans to offer him a new deal.

Richards’ manager Phil Mullen said his client no longer wanted to live in Sydney.

“Xavier wanting to leave the Swans has nothing to do with being unhappy with the club,” Mullen said last month.

“If you’ve got money to spend you’d get better value in Queensland or South Australia than you do in Sydney. Living in Sydney makes it tough on a lot of players.

“He will be able to go home to Melbourne and live with his parents initially and put some money away, that’s been impossible in Sydney.

“I can’t understand why the AFL got rid of COLA.”