"Grown as a man": Why Bont took so long to sign

Marcus Bontempelli has signed a new contract to stay at the Western Bulldogs.

The long-term deal signals Bontempelli’s commitment to the Bulldogs for the rest of his career.

The Bulldogs’ superstar captain will today confirm that he recently put pen to paper on another four-year agreement until 2029, which will take him well into his 30s.

While the delay in an announcement has seen the Bulldogs supporter base grow a little anxious, club and player had committed to thrashing out a new deal some time ago.

Bontempelli, 29, was due to fall out of contract at the end of the season, but despite some rumours, never entertained leaving the club that took him with pick four in the 2013 national draft.

"I’ve had a few different things happening - getting married in the off-season, opening a small coffee shop out in Kew - but ultimately it is no different to how I’ve dealt with other things in the past,” Bontempelli said via a club statement.

“It’s an important decision to spend the right amount of time on.

"This Club means so much to me, it’s hard to put it into a few words to be honest. It is where I have grown as a man and spent all of my adult years coming here at 18.

“When I think about the person I want to become it has been influenced by the people I have spent a lot of time with at the Western Bulldogs.

“I owe so much from a footballing experience perspective but I think I really owe a lot of my maturing as a person and as a man to the football club.

“For me, it’s such a special place, the fans, the people that have supported me along the way. I’ve never not felt supported by our people here at the Club.

“I feel incredibly lucky to have had that for so long.”

In his 11 completed seasons since, the superstar left-footer has won a premiership, claimed three AFL MVP awards and been a six-time All-Australian and six-time club champion.

Bontempelli has never committed to contracts longer than four years, but this latest one means he is now almost certainly set to finish his playing days in red, white and blue.

Bontempelli was last night named the second-best Bulldog of all-time in a centenary gala event, with Ted 'EJ' Whitten declared the greatest.