The veteran Sydney Swans midfielder, who played his 300th game in last week's preliminary final, suffered serious knee injuries when his knee buckled in a tackle in round 19 against Carlton.
He had partial tears of the anterior cruciate ligament and posterior cruciate ligament in his left knee, but only missed three games and returned in round 23.
Speculation ahead of the Grand Final suggested Bolton would need surgery on the knee after the season, and could retire if the Swans won.
After the game, he admitted it was something he would consider when the premiership dust settled.
"We'll let all the emotions settle down and make a decision after that," Bolton told AFL.com.au.
"I won't need surgery on the knee. It was a partial ACL and partial PCL, but there was enough to hang in there and I'm just glad to be a part of it."
Swans coach John Longmire again scoffed at the pre-match rumours surrounding Bolton.
"If Jude needed a knee reconstruction, it's pretty hard to play in a Grand Final," Longmire said.
"We said a number of weeks ago that he'd torn his PCL, but it wasn't completely torn, and he played today and was fine.
"His effort was terrific."
Bolton had 13 touches and seven tackles in the Swans' thrilling 10-point win over Hawthorn. After playing a big role in the club's drought-breaking premiership in 2005, and again in 2012, the 32-year-old said he had a better appreciation the second time around.
"Back in '05 it was probably a relief and a bit of a monkey off the back for the entire club," Bolton said.
"This is special. We've really worked hard to put a game-plan in place and to execute today on the biggest stage is unbelievable."
Callum Twomey is a reporter for the AFL website. Follow him on Twitter at @AFL_CalTwomey
