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AWARDS SEASON


The Western Bulldogs have tonight been announced as GQ Magazines Team of the Year at the Australian award ceremony in Sydney.


Also finalists in the AIS Sport Performance Awards the Dogs for Sports Team of the Year and Luke Beveridge for Coach of the Year.

Marcus Bontempelli and Stewart Crameri at the GQ Awards. Picture Craig Greenhill



THE Western Bulldogs players were encouraged by coach Luke Beveridge to just be themselves, and that might not mean being the stereotypical, macho footballer.

The 2016 captain of the team Easton Wood acknowledged the behind the scenes culture change at the club, after Beveridge took charged two years ago.
Wood was speaking as he accepted the Team of the Year award at the GQ Australian Men of the Year in Sydney last night.

“They bought in Luke Beveridge as a coach and he brought in some really simple philosophies,” he said.
“Football is normally very masculine, about being really tough.
“But he said don’t worry about that, just be yourself ... and that’s gotten us to a pretty good place.”





Beveridge took over from Brendan McCartney after a disastrous 2014 season, which also saw their captain Ryan Griffen leave.
Two years later, they have an AFL premiership.
Wood was backed up by star midfielder Marcus Bontempelli, who also accepted the award alongside Wood, and teammates Caleb Daniel and Stewart Crameri.

Bontempelli said going to work every day at the Bulldogs is a pleasure because of the people around him.
“I’ve always felt it’s the people you do things with that make it particularly special,” he said.
“For me, I can only reflect what is going on in our backyard, and the people I work with every day, day in and day out.
“That’s headed by Luke Beveridge and Peter Gordon and those fellas at the top, who just set an incredible example for us players and us as men, to be the best people we can be, as players as people most certainly.”

The players will soon start pre-season training, and Bontempelli said everyone is fired up ready to go.
“We have such a great young group, I can’t wait to get back and get among it with the boys again,” he said.
“Obviously we will reminisce about the moment and what happened, but it’s pre season and the focus shifts from last season, to next year.”