Richmond chief executive Brendon Gale says that former forward Ben Griffiths’ retirement to pursue a career in American football came as a complete shock to him.
The 26-year-old ended his AFL career after 63 games with Tigers earlier this month, having accepted a four year scholarship with the University of Southern California to pursue a career as a punter in the United States.
Despite an AFL career beset by concussion injuries, Gale says that he was not expecting Griffiths’ sudden career change, believing he could have been a valuable asset to the reigning premiers in 2018.
“I was surprised, but upon reflection it makes sense,” the Richmond CEO told KB and the Doc.
“Clearly we’ve had some concerns about his welfare. He’s had successive repeat concussions so we’re concerned about that, so I guess it makes sense in that context.
“We would have preferred to have Ben on our list and we still believe his best days were ahead of him, that he could get by this little road hump with concussions.
“Had we known, I guess we might have been in a position to do something different (in last year’s trade and free agency period), but Ben didn’t know at the time. It did evolve very quickly and he leaves a Richmond player with a very good experience of our footy club.”
Gale thanked Griffiths for his contribution to the club over the past eight years, believing his move to the US could be one that sets him up for life.
“It is a great opportunity for him. A four year scholarship and maybe a career at the end and a chance to set himself up,” he said.
Listen to Brendon Gale chatting with KB and Doctor Turf in the player below: