Hard work and persistence has defined Dale Morris’ career at the Western Bulldogs and Senior Coach Brendan McCartney was full of praise when announcing the veteran’s contract extension today.

"I think everyone respects and admires Dale for the person he is and the way he plays," McCartney said.

“It was a long time in the making, he’s been unique the whole way through his evolvement into an AFL player… the opportunity to be a rookie and then build a career.

“He’s just a brilliant person and he’s never changed one bit.

"We've got some good young defenders here, but he's pivotal because you know what you're going to get from him each week and you can’t be guaranteed that with young people."

McCartney credits Morris’ dedication to getting the best out of his body for such a successful AFL career, currently just 12 games off the 200 match milestone. 

The 31-year-old’s journey onto an AFL list did not come without hurdles – most recently in the form of a leg injury that kept him out of the game for the entire 2012 season.

“The ones that have to work so hard for their career, they just have a love of the game and nothing is too difficult to progress their career and stay involved in the game,” McCartney said.

“Dale certainly fits that [mould].”