PORT Adelaide ruckman and Vice-Captain Dean Brogan will retire from football after the 2011 season, ending a decorated and determined 11-year career with the Power.
“Broges” - a member of Port Adelaide’s 2004 Premiership team and a 173-game veteran - says it’s the right time to walk away from the game.
“I’ve had 11 fantastic years, but it’s definitely the correct call in everyone’s interests,” Brogan said.
“I’ve been weighing it up in recent weeks, but I’m really comfortable with the decision. I’m 33 in December and while there are times I think I could go around for another year, it’s the best thing for everyone.
“I feel like this season has been one of my best. I’ve performed my role for the team and I was proud to captain the side in the first half of the season while Dom was recovering from injury. I’m privileged to be a part of the leadership group and I really enjoyed serving as captain and hopefully leading by example.
“I’ve been lucky to come back from my own share of injuries and to play through problems like the tendonitis I’ve battled this year. But you never know when the body might give way and force you out of the game. I really don’t want it to come to that.
“As recently as last week, I jagged a hamstring at training. I think the body is telling me something.”
Brogan was recruited from South Adelaide in the 1999 Rookie Draft and made his debut in Round 9 in 2001. A multi-talented sportsman, he is the only man to win a National Basketball League title (Adelaide 36ers 1998) and an AFL Premiership (Port Adelaide 2004).
“I also want to put the Club’s interests first,” he said, acknowledging the personal development he required when he arrived at Alberton.
“Port Adelaide has been fantastic to me since taking a chance on a basketballer-turned-footballer. I owe a lot to the Club for helping me to grow as an athlete and also as a person. I am just so grateful for that.
“But as everyone knows, Port needs to top up its ruck division to build for the future. With a number of high quality and experienced candidates likely to be available at the year’s end, the Club will be in the best position to deal if I’m off the list.
“I’m sure they’ll pick up a fantastic replacement who will then be able to work with the bunch of young guys who we’ve been developing as Port’s ruckmen of the future.”
Dean thanked his partner Jo and daughter Charlize for their support.
“Football is demanding on everyone not just the players,” he said.
“We couldn’t do it without stability at home and Jo and Charli have been fantastic to me. I’m looking forward to having the time to give something back to them.”
Port Adelaide Coach Matthew Primus paid tribute to Brogan.
“The most amazing thing out of it is he’s obviously been able to play more than 150 games and win a Premiership,” Primus said.
“But the biggest thing apart from being able to win a Premiership is he’s come full circle in the kind of person that he’s become.
“Not only does every player want to finish with a Premiership, but they want to finish with a legacy they’ve left for the Club and Dean’s going to leave a very good legacy of what’s valued at this Club and what’s not valued at this Club. And for Dean - along with his Premiership medallion - that’s the biggest thing he can be really proud of.”
Primus praised Brogan for shouldering the ruck duties largely alone during his final couple of seasons.
“Dean’s biggest attribute is that he’s a competitor and he wants to make every ruck duel a contest and every other time when he’s near the ball he makes it very difficult for the opposition and he wants them to earn getting every possession against him,” the Coach said.
“A competitive nature is the number one thing for a ruckman to have and he has that in spades which we’ve certainly tried to pass off onto our younger guys.”
Brogan is keen to follow Primus and another former ruck-mate Brendan Lade into coaching at the AFL level.
“It’s an area of the game that I’ve been working hard to prepare myself for,” Brogan said.
“I’m doing a coaching apprenticeship with the AFL under David Wheadon this year and am completing my Level 2 coaching course. While I’ve still got plenty to learn I believe I have the right knowledge, experience and drive to make an impact perhaps in an assistant or specialist coaching role. And after that, well who knows?”
Primus believes Brogan has what it takes to coach.
“He spends an inordinate amount of time with our young guys watching vision, watching their games, watching other game styles and opponents with them,” Primus said.
“He’s heading down that path and he wants to go down that path. And if he’s got a passion for it he’ll go well at it.”
Brogan will continue to play for the Power in 2011 and no decision has yet been made on which game will be his last.
