Background
Bugden was born in Newtown, New South Wales.
Bugden was born in Newtown, New South Wales.
The teams he played for at a club level were: the Newtown Jets (1981−83), the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs (1984−85, 1986−88), and the Parramatta Eels (1985, 1989−90). Mark Bugden is the younger brother of former Newtown and Parramatta player and New South Wales front row forward Geoff Bugden.
He was a fresh reserve for the Bulldogs in their 24-12 win over the Balmain Tigers in the 1988 Grand Final under the coaching of Philosophy Gould. Although he only won the one premiership under Gould, throughout his career Bugden played under other premiership winning coaches including Warren Ryan at both Newtown and Canterbury-Bankstown, and John Monie at Parramatta.