The 27-year-old says the incident, which saw the triple premiership player sacked last week for persistent breaches of confidentiality, will further strengthen the bonds between all involved with the team.
He said that was reflected in the way the entire club was invited into the circle to sing the song after the Dogs’ emphatic 82-point statement over Fremantle on Sunday at Etihad Stadium.
“Footy is a team game and it’s not just the players that put a lot of effort into playing and getting the win,” he told afl.com.au.
“There’s also all the people around the place who go through the same emotions and put the same sort of effort in.
“[The circle] was a show of unity and that’s what we’re about. We’re a tight team and that’s how we’ll continue to play.”
Boyd said this week’s situation wasn’t distracting to the players, despite the way it was played out on television and radio after the announcement.
He also said it had not been spoken about since it happened late on Wednesday afternoon.
“It wasn’t distracting. We dealt with it, put it in its box, and we moved on,” Boyd said. “The guys are just really keen to get out and play now and continue to roll with the momentum we’ve built over the past few weeks.
“It was done on Wednesday and we put our focus straight into Fremantle. The focus didn’t change along with the events of the week.
“It was always about how the team was going to play and about how we would go about beating them, and the planning worked.”
The big win over Fremantle puts the Dogs into fourth position with a healthy percentage.
Boyd said the team attacked Sunday’s game with vigour given they knew exactly what was on the line - a potential double chance in September.
“We came with real intensity today and the first 10 minutes really set the scene for us with our tackling and our pressure and we were pretty much on top for the remainder of the day,” he said.
“We knew we needed to get this one. We didn’t mind if we won by one point or whatever we won by in the end.
“It was important to get ourselves back in the mix for the top four and play pretty good footy.”
