AFL superstar Zach Merrett celebrates arrival of gorgeous baby

AFL superstar Zach Merrett and his wife Alexandra are celebrating the arrival their new baby.

The loved-up couple shared the first picture of their baby boy on Instagram on Wednesday, with a simple, revealing caption.

“Jude Merrett,” was all it said, followed by a white love heart.

Jude was reportedly a little overdue and was expected at the end of last month.

But with the new season not kicking off until March 6, the Essendon captain and five-time best-and-fairest winner still has plenty of time to get things organised at home before he launches into an important year for the Bombers.

Last year Zach posted pictures of himself with a pregnant Alexandra, saying, “Baby Merrett 🤍 We’ve been waiting for you.”

The excited father has also been sharing pictures of a snazzy new pram and cot.

Alexandra said having a baby in the off-season had certainly made planning a little easier.

“We’ve been pretty relaxed and it’s nice Zach has been able to enjoy it a bit more,’’ she told News Corp.

Kate Turner-Heppell, wife of Essendon great Dyson Heppell, said: “Congratulations guys 🥹🤍🤍🤍 all our love ❤️.”

And Grace Parish, the wife of Merrett’s teammate, Darcy, said: “So happy for you guys🥹 welcome to the world.”

Zach, 29, will be hoping he can lead the Bombers into the finals this year, after they finished a disappointing 11th in 2024.

Not only that, the club — a Vic powerhouse but starved of success in the 21st century — is out to break horrible record, not having won a final since September 4, 2004.

At the end of last year, a large contingent of Essendon players agreed to head to the MCG to watch the first final between the Western Bulldogs and Hawthorn.

The rare move to attend as a large group was driven by the players and was seen as a learning experience in a bid to end their finals drought.