Western Bulldogs young gun Marcus Bontempelli has displayed his commitment to the Club's future by signing a contract extension until the end of 2019.
 
Bontempelli has enjoyed a rapid rise in his young career to date, becoming one of the game’s premier midfielders at just 19-years-old.
 
In his first two seasons in the AFL, Bontempelli has been named best first year player at the AFLPA MVP awards and at the Club, twice selected in the AFLPA’s best 22 players under 22, and narrowly missed out on last year’s NAB AFL Rising Star award.
 
Furthermore, Bontempelli has climbed up the AFL Player Ratings at unprecedented levels, sitting eleventh overall in the AFL and becoming the youngest player ever to feature in the top 20 — by two years and 96 days.
 
Charged with additional responsibility in the midfield in the absence of injured reigning Best and Fairest Tom Liberatore, Bontempelli regularly beat opposition taggers throughout the year and increased his output to over 21 possessions per game in 2015 (15.9 ppg in 2014), while kicking 17 goals.

SEASON REVIEW: Read Marcus Bontempelli's 2015 Season Review, with insights from Assistant Coach Steven King. 

Bontempelli said he was honoured to have committed his long term future to the Club.
 
“My teammates, coaches and staff are just an extended part of my family and I feel very privileged to come in to work every day to help improve our Club with them,” Bontempelli said.
 
“I just couldn’t be prouder to be a Western Bulldogs player and I know that will continue well into my career.”
 
Western Bulldogs CEO David Stevenson said Bontempelli re-signing was welcome news and that the Club was steadfast in ensuring it would focus on the continued development of its playing group.
 
"Marcus is a high quality person and player — and is one of many young people at our Club whose enthusiasm to help take this Club forward is both genuine and infectious," Stevenson said.

"We are excited by the quality of talent we have at the Bulldogs, but we are also fully committed to investing into their development both on and off field so they can reach their potential as people and players.

"As an ambitious Club, underpinned by the strength of our leaders, and the boldness of our youth — Marcus re-signing long term is a sign of confidence in our future plans."
 
Bontempelli joins Jake Stringer, Jack Macrae, Tom Boyd, Mitch Wallis, Easton Wood, Tom Liberatore, Luke Dahlhaus and Jordan Roughead to have signed long-term deals at the Club recently.