Luke Dahlhaus Biography

Luke Dahlhaus announces his retirement, finishing his career with 225 games to his name across 12 seasons with the Western Bulldogs and Geelong.

"I feel very lucky and honoured to have played at two amazing football clubs over 12 years and made friends that I will have for life," Dahlhaus said.

"Thank you to everyone that has supported me along the way."

Luke Dahlhaus will miss several weeks after suffering a foot injury.

"It's medium-term, it's not a matter of him being back in a couple of weeks. He'll be a little bit longer than that. The onset was quite slow and it took us all a little bit by surprise," Cats coach Chris Scott said.

Geelong has secures Luke Dahlhaus as an unrestricted free agent on a four-year deal believed to be worth $2 million.

"Luke is a player that we identified as being able to come in and make an impact on our team," Geelong's general manager of football Simon Lloyd said.

"A high-performing player at AFL level for many years, Luke has the ability to play a number of positions on the ground and take the game on."

Luke Dahlhaus says he's patched things up with Robert Murphy after the former Bulldogs skipper questioned Dahlhaus' commitment, to which he responded sarcastically via social media.

"The emotions just got to me and I'm disappointed with how I acted," Dahlhaus said.

"I contacted Bob and we've sorted it out and showed our love to each other. It's all sorted, nothing but love for him and for the club."

Luke Dahlhaus hits back former teammate Bob Murphy over the suggestion that he lost "dedication" after the Dogs' 2016 premiership.

"I think Luke would put his hand up to say that he maybe wasn't as dedicated or hungry as he'd been the years before," Murphy said on SEN radio in early September.

Dahlhaus made reference to Murphy's comments via a video he posted on Instagram while on holiday in Europe.

"How unmotivating is this? I feel so unmotivated," Dahlhaus said sarcastically while filming from a beach.

"I swear when I woke up after 2016 I was just so unmotivated. F***ing hell, I wish I was listening to SEN."

Patrick Dangerfield admits he has lobbied close friend and unrestricted free agent Luke Dahlhaus in the hope of luring him to the Cats.

"I'm relatively close to Luke (and) I have spoken to him at different stages throughout the season ... I won't lie about that," Dangerfield told 3AW radio.

"I think Luke would be a wonderful player to potentially get into our side, but there's still a bit of work to play out before that could happen."

Luke Dahlhaus appears one step closer to a move to Geelong after informing the Western Bulldogs of his intentions to exercise his free agency option.

Dahlhaus was set to head on leave while weighing up the Bulldogs' final offer, understood to be four years but has since decided to leave the club that drafted him in the 2011 NAB AFL Rookie Draft.

Luke Dahlhaus will miss the remainder of the 2018 season with a serious ankle injury.

Dahlhaus was brought down in a tackle in the second quarter of the Bulldogs' 54-point loss to West Coast, immediately grabbing his left ankle and leaving the ground assisted by trainers.

"The mechanism of the injury has damaged the high ankle area, or the syndesmosis part of his ankle," Bulldogs medical services manager Chris Bell said.

"This is notoriously slow to heal, and we expect at this stage for his recovery to take six to eight weeks, which is going to rule him out for the remainder of the season."

Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge admits that the club and Luke Dahlhaus' management are still a fair distance apart on contract negotiations.

"I think (the length of deal) is part of the conversation," Beveridge said.

"Luke is entitled to leverage his status in the game and get the best deal for him."

Luke Dahlhaus is in no hurry to re-sign with the Bulldogs, but the free agent says he can't see himself playing anywhere else.

"The club is like my family now (because) I've been here eight years and I love it so much, so this is where I want to finish and play for the rest of my days," he said.

Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge slams a report suggesting Luke Dahlhaus, Tom Liberatore and Clay Smith were put up for trade at the end of 2017.

"(The story) is a total fabrication, something that has been made up, a lie, which is really concerning and disappointing," Beveridge said.

"They are very much-loved players at our club and they weren't on the trade table."

Toby Greene says he won't be changing the way he attacks the footy, despite the controversial incident that left Western Bulldog Luke Dahlhaus with a bloodied face in round 21.

"I can't guarantee that in my next marking contest I won't protect myself with my knee, that's just how I play footy, and as far as I'm aware you're allowed to do it," he said.

"If your eyes are on the footy, you're entitled to do what you can to protect yourself.

"It's unfortunate that Luke (Dahlhaus) got hit in the head but obviously I didn't mean to kick him in the head. I was just guarding the space.

"Maybe the media speculation was a lot greater because of my history, but I can't control my reputation."

Toby Greene escapes suspension for planting his boot into Luke Dahlhaus's face, with the Match Review Panel fining him for misconduct.

Greene, who was reported for rough conduct in Friday night's clash against the Western Bulldogs, was handed a fixed financial sanction of $2500, which can be reduced to $1500 with an early guilty plea.

On his return from a two-game suspension, Toby Greene once again finds himself in hot water after being reported when his foot made forceful contact with Bulldog Luke Dahlhaus in the third quarter during a marking contest.

The tough Dogs midfielder left the field with a bloodied face and required staples to stem the flow.

Greater Western Sydney coach Leon Cameron implored the Match Review Panel to view Greene's match-day report in isolation, and not be coloured by the forward's undisciplined reputation.

"Clearly he has got his eyes on the ball so what he's done is protected himself. Obviously the powers to be will look at it but it is what it is, but they need to judge Toby Greene on his merits," Cameron said.

Tom Liberatore's off-season cameo for the Vietnam Swans has earned the ire of the Western Bulldogs.

Liberatore unexpectedly took the field at the weekend while on holidays in the south-east Asian country, reportedly booting a goal and spending some time in the ruck.

"It's not ideal. Hopefully they (the Vietnam Swans) had some good insurance," Bulldogs list manager Jason McCartney joked with Melbourne radio station RSN.

Liberatore, along with travelling companion and Bulldogs teammate Luke Dahlhaus, was named as a emergency in the Vietnam team's AFL Asia Championships campaign.

Dahlhaus stayed on the sidelines, but Liberatore was less eager to occupy the pine.

Liberatore was also snapped drinking beers on the sideline with a odd new haircut - dubbed the 'Friar Tuck' for the lack of hair atop the scalp.

"Young Tom shouldn't be doing those things," McCartney continued, expressing concern about Liberatore playing in the off-season considering he had missed the 2015 season with a ruptured ACL.

"You can't put yourself at risk. He loves a good time, but yeah, you probably need to be a touch smarter."

Luke Dahlhaus is set for a stint on the sidelines after straining the medial ligament in his left knee.

Dahlhaus left the ground during the Bulldogs' clash with Port Adelaide in the first quarter after teammate Tom Campbell fell across his legs and did not return after the quarter-time break.

Father-son prospect Darcy Macpherson is high on the Western Bulldogs' recruiting radar and the Northern Knights' product believes he and Dahlhaus are cut from the same cloth.

"I'm very similar to Luke," Macpherson said.

"I have the same energy around the ball, pressure, tackles, speed and good decision-making.

"He was the one I looked up to when I trained with the Dogs."

Luke Dahlhaus will remain a Western Bulldog until at least the end of 2018 after signing a new three-year deal.

"I'm really relieved; it's obviously an easy decision to sign back up at the Bulldogs," Dahlhaus said.

"[We] got it done before round one, so now I can relax and play footy for the next three years. It's pretty exciting,"

The Bulldogs hose down Melbourne's interest in forward-cum-midfielder Luke Dahlhaus.

"We would absolutely not put Luke up and we've got no interest in putting Luke up for trade given the importance he has at our place, and not just from an on-field sense, but an off-field sense too," Bulldogs chief executive Simon Garlick said.

Luke Dahlhaus tallies a career high 29 disposals and four goals against West Coast which he says is reward for hard work.

"It's been a real tough year, but I've just been working hard in the background, doing extras, [working on] my craft," Dahlhaus said.

"There's been a lot of attention.

"Some games I think I just wasn't working hard enough and there were some easy skill errors. I've been trying to work on that, work on my fitness a bit more, and luckily enough it paid off."

Emerging Bulldogs star Luke Dahlhaus will wear the famous No.6 previously worn by Bulldogs legends Charlie Sutton, Brad Johnson and George Bissett.

"You've just got to look at the locker and you see the names [of players who have played at least 100 games] on it - Charlie Sutton, George Bissett and obviously Brad Johnson - and hopefully by the end of my career it's got my name up there in gold with a premiership medal next to it," Dahlhaus said.

Luke Dahlhaus is unlikely to play again this season after MRI scans reveal a torn ligament caused by a twisted ankle from training.

"Luke has had another terrific season, emerging as a very important member of our team," Dogs football manager James Fantasia said.

"While it is disappointing for both Luke and the club, we are confident he will rehabilitate his injury with great attention to detail ahead of the 2013 pre-season campaign."

Veteran Daniel Giansiracusa sees a little bit of Cyril Rioli in Western Bulldogs goalsneak Luke Dahlhaus.

"I reckon he's similar to Cyril in the way he hits the deck and bounces up to be involved in the next contest or put pressure on," Giansiracusa said.

"Obviously Cyril's been in the game a lot longer and is probably a little bit silkier than Dal, but there's no reason he can't get to that level. I don't want to put too much pressure on him, though."

Exciting Western Bulldogs youngster Luke Dahlhaus has re-signed with the club until the end of 2015.

"It means a lot to me and I'm just really happy about it," Dahlhaus said.

"I am just enjoying playing my role at the moment and hopefully, I keep doing that, and we get a few more wins."

Dreadlocked Luke Dahlhaus has embraced his status as the Western Bulldogs' latest cult figure.

It's a little bit of pressure … (but) I wouldn't really say it's too much," he said.

"It's more a good thing, I think, when you're out there and you hear the crowd roaring every time you get the ball … it gets you up for games and just gets you excited. I love it."

Western Bulldogs youngsters Luke Dahlhaus, Matthew Panos, Liam Jones, Christian Howard, Dylan Addison and Lukas Markovic all sign contract extensions with the club.

"This is an extremely positive outcome for our club and completes the re-signings of our remaining players, including the upgrade of two emerging talents off the rookie list," Bulldogs general manager of football James Fantasia said.

Western Bulldog Luke Dahlhaus has won the round 21 NAB AFL Rising Star nomination after tallying 19 disposals and 2 goals in a loss to the Bombers.

Dahlhaus credits his coach Rodney Eade for his form this year.

"He encourages us to play to our strengths. He always says to me 'You've got your run Lukey, so use your run. Get the ball, take them on and keep trying to win the ball'," Dahlhaus said.

Rodney Eade says Luke Dahlhaus deserves a NAB AFL Rising Star nomination after his effort against Essendon in Round 21.

"He was the spark as much as anyone in that second quarter that kept us in it a little bit. He split the lines with speed and he has a willingness to hunt the ball," Eade said.

"He's carrying a big load for a kid and he fatigued a little bit towards the end of that third quarter. You just wish you could put his effort and intensity into 22 players."

Luke Dahlhaus makes his AFL debut for the Western Bulldogs at Docklands Stadium with 9 disposals (5 kicks and 4 handballs), a mark and 2 tackles in a 24-point loss to St Kilda.