Heath Grundy (born 2 June 1986) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Sydney Swans in the Australian Football League (AFL).

Heath Grundy
Grundy playing for Sydney in June 2017
Personal information
Full name Heath Grundy
Nickname(s) Reg
Date of birth (1986-06-02) 2 June 1986 (age 38)
Original team(s) Norwood (SANFL)
Draft No. 42, 2005 Rookie draft, Sydney
Height 192 cm (6 ft 4 in)
Weight 101 kg (223 lb)
Position(s) Defender
Playing career1
Years Club Games (Goals)
2005–2019 Sydney 256 (24)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 2019.
Career highlights
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Nicknamed 'Reg'[1] due to his namesake Reg Grundy, he was elevated from the Sydney Swans rookie list in 2005 after playing senior football with South Australian National Football League (SANFL) club Norwood and being an All-Australian under-18s player in 2004. He made an impressive senior debut in a Round 16, 2006, kicking three goals in a win against Richmond.

After his three-goal debut, Grundy was used predominantly in the forward line. After Grundy failed to convert his debut success on a consistent basis, Roos moved Grundy into defence where he has remained. It was not until 2009 that Grundy showed genuine promise as a defender. Grundy's ability to outmark his opponent (usually larger in weight and height) and find the ball more frequently, have been his most notable improvements.

In 2010, after Craig Bolton sustained a season-ending injury and then later on when Lewis Roberts-Thomson injured his hamstring, Grundy was called on by Roos to play on the competition's best forwards. He marked players including Nick Riewoldt, Matthew Pavlich, Jonathan Brown, Barry Hall and Lance Franklin.[1] He finished 5th in the Bob Skilton Medal.

2011 was another fairly consistent year for Grundy. He formed a stable partnership with Ted Richards as the Swans' key position defenders and held down the centre half-back position with aplomb. He was forced out of the Swans' run into and through the finals due to contracting glandular fever late in the year.[2]

Statistics

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Statistics are correct to the end of the 2016 season[3]
Legend
  G  
Goals
  K  
Kicks
  D  
Disposals 
  T  
Tackles
  B  
Behinds 
  H  
Handballs 
  M  
Marks
Season Team No. Games Totals Averages (per game)
G B K H D M T G B K H D M T
2006 Sydney 39 6 9 3 34 11 45 21 4 1.5 0.5 5.7 1.8 7.5 3.5 0.7
2007 Sydney 39 8 1 1 29 22 51 21 11 0.1 0.1 3.6 2.8 6.4 2.6 1.4
2008 Sydney 39 10 2 0 68 70 138 49 16 0.2 0.0 6.8 7.0 13.8 4.9 1.6
2009 Sydney 39 22 6 4 181 163 344 126 43 0.3 0.2 8.2 7.4 15.6 5.7 2.0
2010 Sydney 39 24 0 1 287 199 486 158 47 0.0 0.0 12.0 8.3 20.3 6.6 2.0
2011 Sydney 39 20 1 0 250 136 386 110 32 0.1 0.0 12.5 6.8 19.3 5.5 1.6
2012 Sydney 39 24 2 0 258 166 424 117 25 0.1 0.0 10.8 6.9 17.7 4.9 1.0
2013 Sydney 39 25 1 1 198 200 398 97 38 0.0 0.0 7.9 8.0 15.9 3.9 1.5
2014 Sydney 39 25 1 0 224 195 419 117 48 0.0 0.0 9.0 7.8 16.8 4.7 1.9
2015 Sydney 39 23 0 0 228 196 424 135 31 0.0 0.0 9.9 8.5 18.4 5.9 1.3
2016 Sydney 39 26 0 0 264 161 425 126 49 0.0 0.0 10.2 6.2 16.3 4.8 1.9
Career 213 23 10 2021 1519 3540 1077 344 0.1 0.0 9.5 7.1 16.6 5.1 1.6

References

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  1. ^ a b Conn, Malcolm (16 April 2010). "Heath Grundy gained confidence after becoming a permanent member of Swans team". The Australian.
  2. ^ Windley, Matt (20 October 2011). "Illness sapped Swan Heath Grundy's energy". Herald Sun.
  3. ^ "Heath Grundy stats". AFL Tables. Retrieved 1 November 2016.
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