Western Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge has lifted the lid on the club's reaction to star midfielder Josh Dunkley requesting a trade to Essendon.
A move to the Bombers fell through as negotiations between the two clubs failed to find an agreement, with Dunkley now remaining at Whitten Oval with two years left on his contract.
Beveridge revealed he held discussions with Dunkley following the conclusion of the trade period.
“It was a surprise and when Dunks and I caught up last week, I talked to him about the two sides of it,” Beveridge told SEN Breakfast.
“Josh and I are very close, I’ve spent a lot of time with him talking about life as much as footy. I feel like I’ve spent more time than most of our players talking to him about key aspects of his game.
“There’s a personal connection between him and I. I had to contain my emotions and try to put it in some sort of perspective.
“We’ve invested a lot in Josh over the last five years, he’s blossomed as a player, he’s definitely applied himself, he’s a professional but our program has really helped him get to where he’s got to.
“For all the different reasons and the weight of the reasons as to why he might consider the move to another club, my discussion with him was that it doesn’t matter, all that matters to me and to our club is that he’s with us.
“If there’s any tension there, then we need to discuss it, but he reassured me that things are fine. It was a huge surprise for all of us.
“We look forward to him being a key contributor next year.”
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