The Greatest Blue Of All? | Thebigtip

Ever since May the 1st, I have been hearing this question doing the rounds in all media outlets and quite frankly, I'm bemused at some of the answers I have been hearing. "Is Chris Judd the greatest footballer ever to pull on the navy blue"? To my astonishment, the general consensus seems to be an overwhelming "Yes".

Now I am not a Carlton fan, but I do admire the abilities of the modern day great and Chris Judd certainly fits the bill. But to say that he is the best Carlton player of all is a little reckless due to the rich history of one of the great clubs and perhaps a little premature regarding the football he has yet to play. Now Carlton Football Club legends such as Peter "Percy" Jones and Robert Walls to name a few have come out in agreeance to the question and far be it from me to argue with club legends praising one of their own. However, it did beg the question to me, What constitutes a "great" player to becoming "the greatest player ever" from that club?

It seems pretty evident in the modern day media machine that we are very quick to use strong and meaningful words very loosely. Words and phrases like, "legend", "greatest ever", "warrior" and even "hero" and "superstar" get thrown about like a pit bull's play thing without thought for reasoning or the consequence.

I have come up with a few points of criteria to see if Chris Judd really is the "greatest ever blue" of all time. See what you think.

Q: Is he a "one club" player?
A: No. According to CarltonFC.com.au, he has played a total of 204 games. He played 134 games with the West Coast Eagles and has played a total of 70 games for the Navy Blues.

For me , loyalty is a huge factor when rating a player. Chris Judd by all means and purposes is entitled to leave the club that drafted him to go to another club but you will not find many players that have been consistently rated by their peers over the years as some of the greatest footballers of all time, have played for more than one club.

He has only played 70 games for the club that is calling him "the greatest Blue of all". That is nowhere near enough for me so -1 so far.

Q. Has he captained the club?
A. Yes. Chris Judd has captained both the Eagles and the Blues which to me speaks volumes about his ability to lead a team of men and the fact the clubs that he has represented has identified this very early. A big tick here so back to level pegging.

Q. Is he a premiership player?
A. Yes but not at Carlton. He captained the Eagles to a premiership in 06 which is an enormously respectful achievement but he is not a premiership player at Carlton, therefore, he strikes out on this question. Back to minus 1.

Q. Does his ability to play football lift the team mates around him and is he a match winner?
A. A pretty clear yes. His 2nd half against the Swans in round 6 was evidence of his team mates following his lead. He has won many a match on his own boot, particularly for the Eagles but his ability to make the players around him look good is key to his match winning ability. A big tick here. Back to level pegging.

Q. How does his resume look?
A. Chris Judd has a long list of accolades to his name. At his time with Carlton, they read like this:

The accolades that mean little are:
- The Age player of the year 2009

The accolades that mean a lot are:

- The John Nicholls medal, 3 years in a row 08, 09, 10
- All Australian, 3 years in a row 08, 09, 10
- Brownlow medal 2010. I might add that during this year he opened up Matthew Pavlich's cheek with a mean elbow and was ridiculously cleared. Should never have won the medal.

All in all, the 3 best and fairests and the 3 All Australian (captain 08) does enough for me to suggest that his resume is worthy of high regard so a tick for this one. One up now.

And finally:

Q. Who is his competition?
A. Here are some of the Carlton Football Club Legend Inductees:
- Craig Bradley 375 games, 3 time best and fairest, 5 time All Australian, Premiership player.
- Steven Kernahan 251 games, 738 goals, 3 time best and fairest, 6 time All Australian, Premiership player and captain.
- Stephen Silvagni 312 games, 202 goals (not bad for Full Back of the Century), 2 time best and fairest, 7 time All Australian and Premiership player.

I could keep going but i don't think there is any need. Chris Judd is clearly dwarfed by his competition so an emphatic "no" goes here. - 1 and back to level pegging.

For me 3 out of 6 is not good enough. There is no doubt in my mind that Chris Judd is a champion footballer but it is far too early to be calling the man "the greatest ever Blue". I certainly hope that Chris Judd is good enough to thrive under THAT kind of pressure.