Hunt had spoken with West Coast since being cut by the Cats, and had also accepted an invitation to start pre-season training with St Kilda next week.

While the Eagles were in a position to offer Hunt a position in the club's primary list, it is understood the 24-year-old preferred to stay in Victoria if possible.

St Kilda, which has also invited delisted Adelaide pair Shaun McKernan and Jared Petrenko to train, would most likely only have been able to offer Hunt a rookie-list spot.

Hunt played 63 games in his five years with Geelong, becoming a regular senior player in 2012 playing as a run-with midfielder.

He has struggled since with shoulder and groin injuries, and was delisted after knocking back a three-year offer from the Brisbane Lions at the end of 2013 to keep playing with the Cats.

The Tigers had sought to bolster their midfield depth during last month's trade period, asking after St Kilda's David Armitage and exploring a trade for Melbourne's Jack Trengove until the extent of his foot injury was discovered.

The Saints, who on Saturday will sign former Sydney forward Tim Membrey as a free agent, are planning to make four selections in the national draft and have already upgraded four rookies to the club's primary list.

The Swans delisted Membrey by Friday's first list lodgement deadline, allowing the second-year player to sign with the Saints straight away rather than wait until the pre-season draft.

The 20-year-old, who played one game with the Swans after being drafted at No. 46 in the 2012 draft, will start training with St Kilda's young players on Wednesday.

"We are really pleased that official paperwork will be lodged to allow Tim to train when the first- to four-year players return from their break," said St Kilda's chief operating officer Ameet Bains.

"From a list management perspective, he has attributes that complement our current playing group and we think he will be a great addition in 2015."