How good was Craig Bradley?

[Papa G]

He was a great player in the 90s, one of the real class players.

To compare him to his peers, I would rate him better than Michael Long and not quite as good as Peter Matera.

Peter Riccardi was better footballer than Michael Long, just wasn't recognised as much as Argentinian/Italian Recociliation wasn't a big issue at the time. He was a legend of his people and has done much to right the wrongs and rascism footballers of Argentinian/Italian heritage suffered. There will be a Argentinian/Italian heritage round one day Peter... one day.

 

[The_Wookie]

class player in two sports. I wonder how many other players played top level footy in two states (he played for Port before the Great Exodus of the mid 80s), as well as state cricket for two states (at a time people actually gave a damn about it).

never really slowed down and played until he was 37 and was still considering a come back with the Blues to help out after the salary cap bust.

 

[bringbackbucky]

Cheers - I thought I remember that! Miss the good old days of suburban footy. There used to be an old bloke that sold home made pasties outside Alberton Oval out of his wheelbarrow. The best pastie I've ever eaten!

 

[Monkey King]

Hey I was at that game as well. On a school footy trip - was sitting right on the wing where he grabbed the ball. What a legend!

I must have been right behind you, just up the first flight of stairs in the reserve section. What a terrific place to witness him unload that check-side from the boundary.

I have vague memories of some bloke selling bags of peanuts and you threw the coin at him and he threw the nuts to you. Did that happen or was it a dream?

Not a dream. The peanut man was legendary at Princes Park ... oh for simpler times.

 

[Ted38]

Absolute legend, bet the Blues wished they had someone as good as him running around for them at the moment.

 

[Runk]

I never suggested West wasn't a great player or a champion. I just think he had quite a few deficiencies in his game compared to the other top line midfielders of his time.

What a load of crap. Scott West was an inside player who got the ball and was damaging with it. It was his teamates that were his deficiencies. In any other team he would've won a premiership imo. Gun player. Complete gun and should've won a brownlow.

As for Bradley, hated him, great player, best player Carlton ever stole from under Essendon's noses. But then we got Lloyd so karma all in all.

 

[KoutoufidesGhost]

As has been stated by the people with eyes around here, Craig Bradley was an out and out freak.

His lack of profile these days would be because he did very little media work and the fact that he was never considered Carlton's best player during his playing career. There was always the likes of Sticks, Diesel, Kouta and SOS to capture the attention of the media. Braddles is absolutely worthy of comparison with the likes of Robert Harvey and John Platten and he sits comfortably on the wing in Carlton's Team of the Century.

 

[Bob Neil]

I wish I had have seen him play for Port, because like Kernahan, he stepped into Carlton and played like a seasoned pro from the get-go. What was he, 22yo by then? And a member of Port's TOC if I'm not mistaken.

That's a good point - not only did he step straight into Carlton's side like a pro...he'd done it previously at the Port Magpies in the 80s when they were a gun side.

He was the ultimate professional and a champion player - I think the equal of a Robert Harvey, Andrew McLeod.

 

[RAPPA]

Bradley's versatility was also evident in his writing ability and as a performance poet:

 

[jc37]

My memories of Bradley were as a big game player who got lots of the ball and kicked long goals. He was the perfect midfielder to compliment Madden, Ratten and Williams and a runner who would tear you up if you did not watch him. He was a gun midfielder but I think that is the only position he was a gun similar to Robert Harvey in that sense as opposed to players such as Buckley, Hird, Voss etc who could be guns in numerous positions.

 

[tribey]

I would compare him to fletcher, gets over-rated due to playing for a long time.

Decent player who was good at the seagull role who was happy to shirk contests. Would not put him within the top 50 players of the 80s and 90s

Yeah, no.

 

[mediumsizered]

Sounds like your talking about Robbie Flower

Nah, goat53 is only about 12 years old so he is most likely talking about Jack Watts or Cale Morton, but he can't separate the two.

 

[Jars458]

As has been stated by the people with eyes around here, Craig Bradley was an out and out freak.

His lack of profile these days would be because he did very little media work and the fact that he was never considered Carlton's best player during his playing career. There was always the likes of Sticks, Diesel, Kouta and SOS to capture the attention of the media. Braddles is absolutely worthy of comparison with the likes of Robert Harvey and John Platten and he sits comfortably on the wing in Carlton's Team of the Century.

Absolutely. He was an out and out gun. More of an outside player sure, but he did the hard stuff when he had too. There were some fantastic SA on ballers in that period and Carllton were lucky ot have two of the best in Bradley and Naley.

 

[The Speaker]

I like to think of him as the Australian Football first-class games record holder.

 

[blueboy25]

Absolutely. He was an out and out gun. More of an outside player sure, but he did the hard stuff when he had too. There were some fantastic SA on ballers in that period and Carllton were lucky ot have two of the best in Bradley and Naley.

Imagine if Motley didn't have his accident, a lot of SA people believe he would have been better than Bradley.

 

[Fade to Gray]

Bradley wasn't even the 2-3rd best player at his club, let alone the AFL. Williams, Kernahan, Silvangi, Carey, Ablett, Dunstall, Hird, Voss, Ricutto, Buckley, Riciutto, Harvey... could go on. Great player, but behind these guys.

Well, the Ricciuto brothers were great

I remember when I was a kid of about 7 or 8 and being really upset when Mark Williams left for Collingwood. Had a bit of a cry and whing to Mum saying we'll never be able to replace him.

She told me to look out for whoever wore his number next and see how good he was. Obviously it turned out to be Craig Bradley and pretty much from the get go he was an excellent SANFL player. Was one of the absolute best players I have ever seen at kicking the running goal (no 50m line) in those days, always kept an eye on him through his entire career, played many great State of Origin games, and managed the 3 Brownlow votes in his last AFL game at the age of 38.

He would have fitted in perfectly in modern football, was an elite runner with great skills.

 

[Blue Heart]

For those knocking him and calling Braddles, an outside seagull, the non disputable reality, is that at his best, he would be in the starting 18 of any the great sides of the modern era and would be a 300 game player for all AFL teams.

And as for his place in today's AFL football, with the emphasis on run and carry and pin point disposal, he would be a bigger star now, than he was when he played in the 80's and 90's.

 

[CAS79]

Pretty ordinary at the top level... not a single half century in any of his digs.

 

[Bicks]

GUN!!!!!

 

[Blue Heart]

Pretty ordinary at the top level... not a single half century in any of his digs.

For WWIW, I think still think that Peter Bedford is the best "combined" VFL / AFL footballer - first class cricketing talent, I have seen in the near 50's yrs. I have been following Aust. sport.

 

[CAS79]

For WWIW, I think still think that Peter Bedford is the best "combined" VFL / AFL footballer - first class cricketing talent, I have seen in the near 50's yrs. I have been following Aust. sport.

It's going to be a very rare year this year in modern times, Someone who has played shield cricket is nominating fro the draft in Brady Jones. May creep a spot on the rookie list but see him as a better cricketer myself.

 

[Mervyn Beasley]

First and last time I think I'll ever agree with MK. Fantastic footballer, oozed class and skill. Shame his Port games aren't counted by the VFL, far more deserving of the greatest number of games plaudit of than the bearded stick insect from Hawthorn.

You idiot.

2 Great players.

 

[forwardflanker]

What a load of crap. Scott West was an inside player who got the ball and was damaging with it. It was his teamates that were his deficiencies. In any other team he would've won a premiership imo. Gun player. Complete gun and should've won a brownlow.

As for Bradley, hated him, great player, best player Carlton ever stole from under Essendon's noses. But then we got Lloyd so karma all in all.

You horribly overrate West. Bradley is also overrated but not to the same extent.

 

[forwardflanker]

For WWIW, I think still think that Peter Bedford is the best "combined" VFL / AFL footballer - first class cricketing talent, I have seen in the near 50's yrs. I have been following Aust. sport.

Simon O'Donnel wins this hands down since he actually played for Australia which is much much harder thing to do than be a top line league footballer.

 

[westbrom]

Anyone underrating him needs to wake up to themselves. They either didn't watch him play, have very little ability to notice a quality footballer or they were just trying to create issues. Craig Bradley was comfortably one of the best players in the competition every year for 10+ years from the time he joined. John Platten was really similar in style and in quality. Neither where Brett Ratten

Brett Ratten

Age

53

Ht

184cm

Wt

88kg

Pos.

Mid

Career

Season

Last 5

D

22.4

5star

K

12.1

4star

HB

10.3

5star

M

2.9

3star

T

3.0

5star

No current season stats available

D

26.4

5star

K

13.8

5star

HB

12.6

5star

M

3.4

4star

T

1.6

4star

/Anthony Stevens

Anthony Stevens

Age

53

Ht

178cm

Wt

81kg

Pos.

Mid

Career

Season

Last 5

D

21.3

5star

K

15.7

5star

HB

5.6

4star

M

4.0

4star

T

3.0

5star

No current season stats available

D

25.2

5star

K

17.8

5star

HB

7.4

5star

M

3.0

3star

T

1.8

4star

style players, but neither shirked the contest if it was their time to go. Comments about seagulls etc is just ridiculous, their job was to use their speed, endurance and agility to run all day and he was an athletic beast.

Far better than (for example) Crawford, who I thought was a gun as well, as Crawf was at his peak for just a few years.
Was Bradley as good as Judd or Ablett Jnr? No.. but no one has been, not Dusty, not McLeod, not Harvey etc etc
But Bradley matches up in that next tier of 20 or so footballers.. and was (and probably still is) a ripper of a bloke