Norm Smith winner reveals little-known Medal fact

Jason Johannisen's legacy with the Western Bulldogs is cemented forever after playing a critical role in helping the Dogs break their 62-year premiership drought in 2016.

The Bulldogs went on a fairy-tale run in the finals series, playing every September game as the away side and being the first team in AFL history to win the premiership from 7th on the ladder.

Johannisen's best moment came in the 2016 decider against Sydney, as the half-back recorded 33 touches and a record-breaking 876 meters gained to win the Norm Smith Medal.

The pictures of Johannisen claiming the top individual honour on the day are etched into the minds of Doggies fans, and now 10 years on, the half-back revealed one little secret that all Norm Smith winners know.

“I’m probably not allowed to say this, but I got told (that I had won it) before the ceremony,” Johannisen told the Adam and Symon Show when asked if he thought he had a chance to win the Norm Smith.

“After celebrating with a few of the boys after the siren, I got tapped on the shoulder and got told, ‘Make sure you don’t say anything crazy’.

“It hit me for six really, because I was like, 'Wow, I just won a Grand Final'. That’s all the emotion, and then being told that I won the Norm Smith, I was in pure shock.

“I would have been more surprised if I didn’t know when Shannon Grant says my name.”

Speaking on this week's episode of This is Your Journey - thanks to Tobin Brothers, Johannisen discussed his experience on that famous day, as well as his career as a whole.

Listen to the episode with Sam Edmund below: