Claiming his second Charles Sutton Medal after being voted the Dogs’ best and fairest player on Wednesday night, Griffen spoke exclusively to BulldogsTV expressing his eagerness to get back to work with the tight knit Bulldogs playing group.
“I reckon this is probably the closest the group has been in a while, with the young guys coming through together they’ve formed a very special bond and they’ve formed a very special bond with the older blokes too,” Griffen said.
“It’s very exciting for the footy club so I’m looking forward to November 18 when we start preseason.”
In the meantime, eight weeks of vacation will give the 27-year-old ample time to reflect on a stellar 2013 season in which he averaged 29 possessions per game and gained selection to the 40-man All-Australian squad that will be narrowed to 22 later this month.
While the statistics are something Griffen admits he’ll reflect on when his playing days are over, the prestige of receiving the best and fairest award struck in honour of the Club’s late premiership captain/coach Charles Sutton was not lost on him.
“It means a lot, Charlie was big part of this footy club," Griffen told BulldogsTV.
“I remember when Charlie used to come down to the change rooms. He was always the same, it didn’t matter if we lost or if we’d won, he was a fantastic bloke.
“It is a very special award, and I’m very humbled to win it.”
Griffen was also the recipient of the inaugural John Van Groningen Team First Award, named in honour of the Club’s late chaplain.
The award was the culmination of weekly polling across the 23 rounds of the home and away season in which the playing group voted for the player that placed the team above the individual through a single on-field act or performance.
