Well done to Jezza on becoming the 23rd person inducted into the Australian Sport Hall Of Fame. A thoughly well deserved nomination! I personally never saw him play live as it was slightly before my time (ie born 1983) but i have seen the tapes and Jezza was without doubt one of the best players of his era!

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You heard it here first!

Gary Ablett Snr without being a psycho.

I was taken to my first game in 1974 out at Waverley by the Hookers across the road. They gave me a Carlton jumper with 25 on the back and we sat on the boundary. Jezza rose above us standing on some poor bastard's head. From that moment on I was a Carlton tragic.

Still the greatest Carlton player of all time.

I think I've told this story before...

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“When a clown moves into a palace, he doesn't become a king. The palace turns into a circus.”
Turkish Proverb

I remember the excitement that this soccer player kid was coming from Canberra and he just exceeded our expectations time after time until he was an out and out champ in a short space of time. Doull arrived around the same time and followed a lower key trajectory and nevertheless finished up in the same ball park as Jezza. It was a great time to be a Carlton supporter.
Well deserved Jezza!

Hammer was a skilful soccer player!

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Bawditawaba

Watch that 1970 GF and Jezza stands out because he played the game on another level. Looks like an elite player circa 2010 jumped into a time machine and went back 40 years.

And GWS, were they the Hooker family, or a bunch of hookers? The latter is a much better story... Although if its the glorious ranga Steve Hookers family, that wouldn't be bad either.

Nothing like friendly hookers

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...you beauty!!!!!!!!!!!

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THEY LIKE TO SEND UP!!!!!!!!

Until each team plays each other the same number of times, the AFL, as a fair dinkum competition, cannot be taken seriously.

He (Mr Swann) said the honour and pride associated with the club's traditional navy blue jumper was priceless.

him and 1968 - Jezza leapt onto the moon before man ever walked it!

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This type of slight is alien in the more cultured part of the world - Walsh. Its up there with mad dogs, Englishmen and the midday sun!

I can't really remember much of Jezza playing football.

I wish I could so I would better understand his skills and standing in the game.

He sounds like a true gun.

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my biggest memory of jezza was when he was knocked out by Stan Magro in 1979 i think , at Princes Park, it was the only time I ever cried at the footy, you thought the sos/milburn incident got you mad, this was crazy, even if it was a fair bump at the time

Funny how time changes things.
I saw all of Jezza's career starting from the dark days of the mid sixties up to the halcyon days that followed.
Those of you who are too young to have seen it may look at those of us old enough to remember with some envy, the way I used to envy my dad who used to say how he and his dad used to to go the MCG to watch Bradman.
Well the wheel turns and one day you will be able to tell others how you saw Judd and others play when those around you marvel at stories of his expoits and we Jezza followers are gone.

By the way, kids, D.K. Lillee is still the greatest fast bowler of all time and don't let the numbers tell you anything else. But that's another story altogether.

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Let slip the Blues of war (with apologies to William Shakespeare) (and Sir Francis Bacon, just in case)

Im totally with you Blue Sombrero.

I too was lucky enough to see the champ's career right from the start.
First season, 3rd in the Brownlow.... see that done very often ?
Just a freak, play any position, 100 goal kicker, one of the best high
marks you would ever see (did it weekly), amazing balance, the works.

A few treasured memories.....
The day at PP he made the then state full back, Barry Davis, look like a
total fool and mesmerised him by kicking 6 goals on him in 10 minutes.
It was a show to behold.

Him kicking 6.12 out of our 30.30 against Hawthorn when i reckon he
just might have kicked about 15 that day with a bit more luck.

Taking the constant hits from thugs like Kevin Neale, Ray Biffin, Sheedy
etc and just making them ultimately look silly with his sheer class.

1979 Grand Final, the ultimate fairytale with happy ending.

Yet 6 months later he was at Stkilda, and a bit of my love of footy died right there.

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I wore number 25 on the back of my jumper 40 years ago..... yes, pre Marchesani !!

Hooker family sadly.

Dad's a Melbourne supporter. He still thinks I prostituted myself that day...

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“When a clown moves into a palace, he doesn't become a king. The palace turns into a circus.”
Turkish Proverb

At least you were well paid.

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I hope Essendon* folds.

It's the gift that keeps on giving...

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“When a clown moves into a palace, he doesn't become a king. The palace turns into a circus.”
Turkish Proverb

Jezza's career stats, while clearly indicative of an incredible player, still don't do justice to the "miraculousness factor" (patent pending) exemplified by the anecdote above.

If there was a stat for "miraculous", or "breath taking", or "freakishness", or "how the f%&k did he do that" then no one would ever use the names Judd and Swan in the same sentence again.

Jezza at his prime and for many years did stuff every week that would send shivers up your spine, better and more frequently than any other player I've seen. He should have been sponsored by the State Electricity Commission.

Even within that unbelievable 10 mins (some say 12 minutes) at Princes Park against Essendon* when he slammed on 6 goals there were individual moments that were amazing. Two of those goals came from marks at CHF that had to be seen to be believed and left everyone looking at each other, laughing, and shaking their heads. On both occasions Jezza was leading out hotly pressed and should have taken marks on his chest. The first one bounced off his chest but while he was in mid air catapulting forward and parallel to the ground he did a complete 360 degree corkscrew, juggling the ball all the way until it was safely in his hands. The second one also bounced off his chest and rebounded almost 10 metres away, but somehow, incredibly, he had the balance and recovery to launch himself and take the mark in his finger tips inches off the ground.

The stats say 2 marks 2 goals. True, he should have taken both marks on his chest. The miraculousness meter however went off the scale, as did the pleasure factor in the crowd.

Well done champ on your award. Glad to see the Australian Sports Hall of Fame committee is very much aware of the miraculousness factor

The best i ever watched in the old dark navy.Privelage to watch the guy.

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All my dangerous friends

NOt sure I remember all the details correctly but here goes. At the height of his career in the mid 70s, Jezza was in the Victorian team to play WA. He may even have been captain. Anyway, his wife went into labour, and he was up the whole night - didn't sleep a wink. He nevertheless played the next day and from memory kicked either 9 or 10 goals. Can someone confirm any details here?

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Never argue with idiots. They drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience!!!

After Monday and Tuesday, even the calendar says W T F .........
Visit http://fromthemoshpit.com/

I also reckon that believe it or not, he's a very underrated player. People my age talk about Ablett Snr and Carey as the best players they've seen. I think Jezza is easily their equal. There's nothing I ever saw Ablett do that I didn't see Jezza do ON A CONSISTENT BASIS WEEK IN WEEK OUT.

And on top of this, he did it in 4 premiership wins. AND, arguably nearly the best in two of them. (I personally think Crosswell pips him in 1970 and Walls in 1972, but if there were a NS medal, he could just as easily have won them both).

And versatile? He played with equal brilliance at FF, CHF, HFF, Centre, Ruck-rover, HBF, and BP. He even took a few turns in the key defensive posts.

The second best player I've ever seen!!!!!




(Can't go past big Nick, of course who was the best by a mile!!!!!!!!!!!!)

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Never argue with idiots. They drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience!!!

After Monday and Tuesday, even the calendar says W T F .........
Visit http://fromthemoshpit.com/

I was playing in The Carlton Little league in the 70s and we were playing at home. Just before half time while we getting changed Jezza came in with massive corky. Here was us, 9 years old, with Jezza walking around the rooms naked with an ice pack strapped to both his legs smoking a cigarette chatting to the trainers. It was certainly a steep learning curve for us little tackers. Something I will always remember.