- Video
-
Club Roar
Captured a great grassroots sporting moment? We want to see it!Content Collections
The Roar Community
- Join
- Login
Matthew Boyd will wait for the dust to settle on the Western Bulldogs’ drought-breaking premiership before making a decision on his playing future.
All the wash-up from the AFL Grand Final
» Match report: Bulldogs are premiers!
» BUCKLAND: The West wins one for all
» Seven talking points from the match
» Western Bulldogs player ratings
» Sydney Swans player ratings
» Our top ten tweets from the day
» Another classic Bulldogs banner
» Re-live all the action with our live blog
Boyd was a key player in the Dogs’ enthralling 22-point grand final win over Sydney, his 27-possession performance capping a season that saw him earn his third All Australian nod.
But at 34, the 282-game veteran’s future beyond this season has still been a source of conjecture.
“I’m just going to enjoy this moment and think about that stuff in about three weeks time when we stop partying,” Boyd said in the rooms after the game.
The Dogs put contract talks on hold until after the grand final following a frank mid-season conversation between Boyd and Luke Beveridge.
But the coach revealed in the week leading up to the preliminary final that he would be given the opportunity to play on next year should he so choose.
However, it’s not a decision to be made in the euphoric aftermath of the Bulldogs’ first grand final win since 1954.
“It hasn’t fully sunk in yet but it’s starting too – I’m looking forward to when it really does sink in,” he said.
“I’m really proud of this group.
“The emotions will come at some point. I even got a bit emotional during the week and before the game, just in my quiet time, thinking about what this footy club has been through and the opportunity that we had to do something special together.
“We’ve never put a ceiling on ourselves, we’ve never put a timeframe on when we could have success.
“It just shows that if you’ve got belief in each other and belief in the way that we play then anything’s possible.”
Who’s in your ultimate team? Pick the best team and compete with other fans for daily prizes on Draftstars. For the best odds on the game try out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Think. Is this a bet you really want to place? Set a deposit limit.