Fevola said public speculation during his long-running negotiations that he was contemplating heading elsewhere had been a ''joke'', after he yesterday signed to stay with the Blues for the next three years.

''I was never going to leave Carlton,'' he said. ''Carlton has been my home for 10 years, it's like a family here.

''I'm the longest-serving player here at the club, we've got such a young group all these No1 draft picks, all the young kids coming through I've done some silly things but I'd be pretty silly to leave the club.

''We're on the way up, so there was no way I was going to leave.''

The new deal, reportedly worth $2.1million, does not contain a behavioural clause, despite the club warning him on the eve of this season that he would be sacked if he had another alcohol-related misdemeanour.

''Fev's told me he's not going to have any more issues, not that he had that many,'' interim president Stephen Kernahan said.

''He's confirmed to the footy club that he will be very well behaved over the next three years [and] I think Fev can do the job for us.''

It was reported that Sydney was attempting to lure Fevola on what was rumoured to be a $3million, four-year deal.

''It's such a relief to get it done now and not the end of the year and I'm just rapt the club's shown faith in me for the next three years and the way we've been playing on the field, it looks like it's going to be a pretty successful three years,'' Fevola said. ''I didn't really realise they [my management and the club] were still talking. I came off the track yesterday and had a missed call from Mark [Kleiman], my manager, and I rang him up and he said 'everything's ready to go'.'' AAP