Talk:Chris Judd
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The boy deserved a better wikipage than previous - that hardly did him justice. Boomtish 10:56, 23 February 2006 (UTC)
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After being awarded a sporting scholarship by renowned Victorian private school Caulfield Grammar, Judd decided to concentrate on his football, the game he had first played at the age of seven. Named captain of the school's First XVIII, Judd stood out like a man amongst boys during school football games, consistently overpowering and blowing by his opponents, a trait that would become all too familiar at AFL level. - - Dud shoulders halted his progress in his late teens, with Judd requiring both shoulders to undergo reconstruction one after the other at age 16 and 17. However, neither could stop his seemingly pre-ordained journey to football greatness. - - Picked up by his regional Sandringham Dragons as a bottom-age recruit, Judd impressed in his limited appearances, earning selection for Vic Metro in the mid-year State Championships, and awarded an AIS/AFL Academy Scholarship.
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- Though injury would again trouble him in his draftable year - 2001 - Judd again managed a selection in the State Championships, this time going one further and being named Captain of the Metro team. Injury coerced him into irregular appearances for the rest of the season, though Judd would shine in his screening session after his fragile body denied him an appearance at the Draft Camp, with Judd recording an outstanding level of 15 for his beep test. - - As draft day approached, popular opinion dictated that Judd would be one of the first three names called out on the day, alongside Luke Hodge and Luke Ball. As fate would have it, his troublesome shoulders shied both Hawthorn and St Kilda away, leaving the Eagles to pick up the teenage prodigy with the 3rd overall pick in the draft. - - ==Exploding onto the Scene - Debut Season== - - With his attractive physical package, standing at 189cm and with an impressive frame, coupled with his outstanding athletic abilities, Judd was one of few draftees to be already physically equipped for the gruelling and demanding game at AFL level. - - As such, Judd made his debut for the Eagles in Round 2 of the 2002 Premiership Season, but refused to enter the AFL ranks quietly - exploding onto the footballing scene with an impressive 19 disposal, 4 tackle effort, which also yielded the boy many dubbed 'The Dynamite Kid' a goal.
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Judd would continue his rich vein of form for much of the remainder of the season, capturing the attention of the footballing world with his explosive speed, game-breaking ability, and knack for taking over games. He would play the remaining 22 games, finishing with outstanding averages of 15 disposals, 2 marks, 3 tackles, and a goal a game. If it were not for fellow budding superstar Nick Riewoldt of the Saints, Judd would have landed the coveted AFL Rising Star Award, instead having to settle for 2nd place in what was one of the most fruitful years of young talent in decades.
- - Nevertheless, Judd capped off his explosive debut season with a 3rd placing in the Eagles Club Champion Award, a remarkable effort for a rookie-year player, and by representing Australia in the annual International Rules Series. - - - ==Rising Star to Superstar== - - After following up his debut season with another stunning year in 2003, much speculation surrounded the rising star on his contract status. Whilst Judd insisted he was rather happy in West Australia, tabloids, specifically that in Victoria, were more than happy to add fuel to speculation Judd would return to his home state of Victoria. - - Judd, however, stayed true to the club that drafted him, signing a new two year deal that would keep him in WA until the end of 2005. - - 2004 saw the then 20-year-old Judd appointed as one of four Eagles vice captains, a testimony to his ever-growing status around the footballing world and own maturity as a footballer. He would later serve as West Coast's acting captain for five matches as skipper Ben Cousins battled with injury. - - With two seasons under his belt, Judd looked set to complete his transformation from rising star to genuine superstar of the competition; and to the general awe of the football world, he did just that. - - Opening the season with a scorching 23 disposal, 6 tackles, and 4 goal effort against the Western Bulldogs, Judd went on to play all 22 games for the season, averaging 22 disposals, 4 tackles, and a goal a game, all the while continuing to torch direct opponents and opposition teams with his uncanny ability to break open games. Not just all glamour though, Judd led the competition in hard-ball gets and ended the season as the Eagles leader in tackles, inside 50s, loose-ball gets and kicks. - [[Image:Brownlow2.jpg|200px|thumb|left|Judd with the Chas Brownlow Medal]] - His remarkable '04 campaign was topped in late September when he became the youngest ever Brownlow Medal winner since Gavin Wanganeen in 1993, holding out the Adelaide Crows' Mark Ricciuto to finish off the season with the game's highest individual honour at just 20 years of age in only his 3rd season of AFL Football. In perhaps more controversial matters, Judd's girlfriend, model Rebecca Twigley, managed to steal the man of the moment's thunder by donning a revealing red dress which soon appeared in newspapers across the country. In a stunning flourish of awards, Judd was also named to his first All Australian Team as a wingman, and won his first West Coast Eagles’ Club Champion Award. - - ==2005== - - After graduating to superstar status in what was a glorious 2004, Judd's market value was at its peak, once again prompting speculation Judd would force his way back to his home state of Victoria. The reigning Brownlow medallist, however, ended such speculation by re-signing with the Eagles for a further two seasons, ensuring he would remain with them, at the very least, until the end of the 2007 season. - - With opposition teams paying even more close attention to him, Judd's situation with opposition taggers was the subject of much public debate. Using Judd's case as one of the worst-case examples, some called for greater attention to defensive-minded taggers, who's sole role within the game to keep game-breakers like Judd away from the flow of the game was borderlining on illegal constant clinging and infringing away from the eyes of the umpires.
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- Nevertheless, Judd continued to break free, consolidating his consistent approach to the game, and leading the Eagles to their first Grand Final berth since 1994. Though his team would go down fighting in a remarkable finish to that last game in September, Judd's brilliant performance on the biggest stage of the season was recognised with the star midfielder winning the Norm Smith Medal for his best on ground performance. - - On March 1st, 2006, Judd was named captain of the West Coast Eagles, succeeding Ben Cousins. - - ==Trivia== - - *Played his first game at age seven with East Sandringham Juniors, who have named a club award, the Chris Judd Perpetual Trophy, after him - *Has his own column, called "Juddy's Jibe", on the West Coast Eagles website - *Scored a 92.6 in his VCE
