The 28-year-old, who will celebrate his 150th game this Sunday when the Sydney Swans take on the Gold Coast at Metricon Stadium, has established himself as one of the club’s leading key defenders, despite the fact he was recruited as a forward.
Taken by the Swans at pick 42 in the 2005 rookie draft, Grundy was promoted to the senior list the following year and booted three goals on debut against Richmond in round 16, 2006.
But with an array of talent inside the Swans’ forward 50, including the likes of Barry Hall and Michael O’Loughlin, a decision to trial the 192cm player down back shaped the next chapter of Grundy’s career at the Swans.
“It was under Roosy (former coach Paul Roos), but it was about halfway through a game and we were a bit short on defenders, so I went down back and just played footy,” Grundy told media before training on Wednesday.
“It really took a weight off my shoulders a little bit and I could just relax and play my own game and go about my business.
“From then on I had a couple of little stints up forward but was mainly in defence and guys like Tadhg Kennelly, Craig Bolton and Leo Barry and those guys gave me a stack of confidence from there and helped me out.
“I seemed to fit the mould pretty well so the rest is history I guess.”
After spending a year on the rookie list, Grundy admitted the early days were tough as he tried to establish himself in an already successful side, one that had won the premiership in 2005 and reached the Grand Final the following year.
With his milestone game and life membership ahead, and nine seasons under his belt, Grundy said he was grateful the club persisted with him and allowed him to discover his best role within the team.
“I always knew I could play at this level, it was just about working on the things I needed to work on,” he said.
“Down back was where it suited me.
“It was great by the club to give me the opportunity to go down there and become a permanent player.
“I had to do it pretty hard early on and I had a bit of a slow start to my career, so to be able to secure my spot in the senior side and finally get to 150 feels great.
“I’m hoping there’s more to come.”
Grundy’s milestone match will be met with a tough assignment for the Swans, who travel north to the Gold Coast to take on the Suns.
Grundy said he and fellow defender Ted Richards would have a task on their hands to contain Gold Coast’s key talls, including Tom Lynch, Charlie Dixon and Sam Day.
“They’re going really well,” he said.
“They’ve had a really good year and they’ve got some really tall forwards who are all pretty mobile.
“Myself and Teddy will have our work cut out again this week and hopefully if we put in a good team effort we’ll come away with a win.”
The defender said the Suns’ start to the season, which has seen them win seven of their first ten games, was an indication that the Gold Coast were serious contenders this year.
“We’re halfway through the season and they’ve played some good footy,” he said.
“You can’t hide that fact and to be sitting where they are, they’re a really good side.
“You don’t get that on luck, so they’ve played some good, strong footy and we’re going to have to take them pretty seriously this week.”
