The Western Bulldogs and Greater Western Sydney have agreed to a blockbuster deal, swapping Ryan Griffen for forward Tom Boyd.
With Thursday’s AFL trade period deadline rapidly approaching, the Bulldogs managed to pry last year’s No.1 draft pick from the Giants in exchange for disgruntled star midfielder Griffen and 2014’s No.6 pick.
Both players have agreed to lucrative deals with their new clubs- Boyd’s in the range of $6 million across seven seasons, the richest in Bulldogs’ history, while Griffen will receive an additional three years on top of his 2015 salary of roughly $650,000.
The Bulldogs’ attempts to land the 200cm, 104kg power forward looked all but dead on Tuesday when GWS chief executive David Matthews reiterated sentiments that Boyd would not be traded “under any circumstances”.
That changed on Wednesday when the Bulldogs agreed to pay a third of Griffen’s 2015 salary and bolster GWS’ draft standing alongside picks four and seven.
“First, the Bulldogs have made a revised and attractive offer which now includes their first draft pick (six), an elite player in Ryan Griffen and salary cap assistance in relation to his contract,” Matthews said.
“We are delighted to have Ryan Griffen at the club. He is not only a great talent but a person with strong values and brings more experience and maturity to the list.”
The big but inexperienced Boyd is expected to fill the key forward role missing from the Bulldogs attack since Barry Hall’s retirement in 2011.
“To attract last year’s No.1 draft pick and a standout elite player of the class of 2013 to the kennel is a major coup,” Bulldogs chief executive Simon Garlick said.
“We know our supporters will be thrilled to see Tom play alongside the likes of Liberatore, Roughead, Wallis, Bontempelli, Macrae, Stringer, Dahlhaus, Johannisen, Hunter, Hrovat, Smith, Roberts and Talia, not to mention Minson, Murphy, Morris and Boyd and the rest of our dedicated playing group.”
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