How one fan letter and a 20 cent coin saved the Western Bulldogs

CAN one young fan save a football club? Terry Wallace certainly thinks so, 20 years on from a fateful letter landing on his desk at Whitten Oval just weeks into his new job as coach.

Chris Grant is a legend of the Western Bulldogs.

CAN one letter and 20 cents save a football club?

Terry Wallace certainly thinks so, 20 years on from that fateful letter landing on his desk at Whitten Oval just weeks into his new job as head coach.

The letter, of course, was from seven-year-old Sunbury fan Ryan Adams, pleading for star Chris Grant to stay in the red, white and blue.

Attached was a 20 cent coin he hoped would prove the difference between the Dogs’ modest offer and 1.5 million reasons to move to Port Adelaide.

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Eventually that letter found Grant and tugged at his heartstrings enough to help sway him from the Power’s once-in-a-lifetime deal.

Wallace says now he forwarded it on to Grant not out of desperation, because it was his right to read his own mail.

Ryan Adams contacted the Bulldogs as a seven-year-old.

In a remarkable piece of timing, Grant re-signed at the Western Bulldogs 20 years ago.

On Saturday the former captain, board member and current football boss will be a part of the club’s first premiership tilt since 1961.

Adams, still living in Sunbury and a Dogs member since 2005, will be at the MCG cheering on the side he helped save.

“Who would have thought a kid’s 20 cent piece and heartfelt letter would be such a critical component of the survival of a footy club?’’ Wallace said.

“By sending it on I never ever thought it would have the impact on Chris that it had. I just sent it on because it was his letter and he deserved to know what everyone was thinking about him.”

Adams was a loyal Dogs member encouraged by his father Gary to pen his letter after deciding he could not support Footscray if Grant departed.

“He was really upset about it, so I told him to write the letter,” Gary said 20 years ago.

“Ryan has a learning disability so we encourage him to do things like write letters and he wanted to put some money in there as well.”

Ryan said he couldn’t bear the thought the club’s star recruit not playing at Footscray.

“I pretty much just wrote the letter and gave it to him and he liked it and he stayed at the Bulldogs,’’ Adams told the Herald Sun.

“I just thought it was a good thing to do for him to be staying at the one club and I didn’t want him to go.

Chris Grant was on the verge of leaving the Western Bulldogs.

“I am actually going with my mum (to the Grand Final). I have been a Bulldogs member since 2005. It’s pretty exciting. It’s going to be a good game. This will be one of the first finals I have been to.”

Back when Adams intervened the Dogs were a basket case, with new president David Smorgon, new coach Wallace and Footscray taskforce member Rick Kennedy trying to keep the club afloat.

Wallace knew the club’s prospects were bleak but had to pitch his hopes and dreams to 23-year-old key position star Grant.

“His signing was super important. There was so much uncertainty at the time around the club,’’ Wallace said.

“The joint was broke, for all intents and purposes we had finished last because we had finished 15th and Fitzroy were going to Brisbane.

“We were almost at rock bottom and to have lost our best player would be pretty hard. It was an unbelievable offer he knocked back but it shows his loyalty to the footy club.”

Smorgon said the consequences of potentially losing Grant were much more dire than a star player departing.

Chris Grant with Ryan Adams two years after Adams contacted the Dogs.

Chris Grant played out the rest of his career at the Bulldogs.

“We had met Chris at Rick Kennedy’s place in Moonee Ponds one Saturday morning and having just taken over the club explained our plans,” Smorgon said.

“He was very upfront that he had a number of huge offers, one from Port Adelaide.

“We knew if Chris decided to go another 12 players would have been tempted to leave. It was such a difficult time for the club.

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“When he left that meeting we were 50-50 in our minds but we were so relieved and excited to find that Chris had decided to stay thanks to that donation.”

Adams’ letter has taken on mythical status, with Grant admitting in 2010 the note had crystallised his decision of the previous day to stay rather than changed his mind.

But a club short on premierships needs emotional touchstones. Adams hopes the circle can be complete with a premiership victory on Saturday.