Christopher Lee "Chris" Grant (born 13 December 1972) is a former Australian rules football player in the Australian Football League, a legend of the Western Bulldogs Football Club and a member of the Australian Football Hall of Fame. He was born in Daylesford, Victoria, Australia.
Grant was recruited by the Footscray Football Club (now Western Bulldogs) in the 1988 VFL Draft at pick number 105, and played his first AFL game in 1990 at the age of 17. Grant kicked 51 goals that season, the youngest player in VFL-AFL history to achieve this feat, to be the leading goalkicker for the club.
Over the following years, Grant established himself as a respected player in the half-forward position. He earned All-Australian honours in 1994 and 1996. He polled 27 votes in the 1997 Brownlow Medal, one more than winner Robert Harvey; however, he was ineligible to win the award due to a one-match suspension for striking Hawthorn's Nick Holland.
In 2001 he was named team captain, and was selected as a member of the Footscray & Western Bulldogs 'Team of the Century' in 2002. He missed the 2003 season to an ACL injury sustained in Round 1. He relinquished the captaincy at the end of the 2004 season.
Grant has played over 300 games and scored more than 500 goals throughout his career, an astonishing feat considering he spent much of his career at centre half back, playing on the game's best key forwards. He won the club best-and-fairest award in 1994 and 1996 (and came second in 1997, 1998, and 1999, and third in 2001). He gained third place in the 1996 Brownlow Medal. He received All-Australian Honours in 1997, 1998, and 1999. He was the club's leading goal-kicker in 1990 and 1994.
In playing his 330th game on 5 August 2006, Grant broke Doug Hawkins' record for most number of games played for the Western Bulldogs. He held the club games record until 2009, when he was passed by Brad Johnson.
Near the end of 1996 Grant was offered a large amount of money to move to Port Adelaide, but one factor which changed his mind was when a little boy, Ryan Adams, sent him a letter with an attached 20-cent coin saying it was all he had and that Grant could keep it if he stayed with the Western Bulldogs.
Grant announced his retirement from senior football at the Bulldogs' best-and-fairest presentation on 2 October 2007, following a career that spanned 18 seasons and 341 games.
Chris Grant came out of retirement to represent his old club in Daylesford and in his first game of the season kicked 11 goals.
Famous quotes containing the words chris and/or grant:
“When I get all these accolades for being true to myself, I say, “Who else can I be? I can’t be Chris Evert.””
—Martina Navratilova (b. 1956)
“I know no method to secure the repeal of bad or obnoxious laws so effective as their stringent execution.”
—Ulysses S. Grant (1822–1885)