- Video
-
Club Roar
Captured a great grassroots sporting moment? We want to see it!Content Collections
The Roar Community
- Join
- Login
Nick Maxwell was never the greatest player on an AFL field. He was never the quickest, he was never the tallest, and he was never the most skilled.
But he definitely got the best out of himself in his decorated 208-game AFL career.
He had to deal with doubters, critics and even haters, but he never let it get to him.
Even at the announcement of his retirement, there were the haters ready to take one last shot at him.
Scouring through social media and you’ll see comments such as “Most overrated player in history”, “Most overrated premiership captain in history”, “An absolute spud”, “No great loss to football…dud”, “Flog” (this came up quite a few times).
And finally “Shittest captain and shittest bloke to step foot in the AFL”.
Despite there being a few counter arguments thrown in there, mostly from Collingwood supporters, it’s really hard to see where these comments are actually coming from.
The comments won’t bother Maxwell, they never have. Throughout his whole career, Maxwell never cared what people said about him outside the football club.
But the comments that were made about Maxwell, and have been made about him throughout his whole career, are ridiculous and completely unjustified.
He wasn’t the greatest footballer but you can’t play 208 games in the modern AFL era without being half decent, let alone be club captain for five seasons.
Having the accolade of being in the best 18 for the entire 2009 season is quite an achievement for the most overrated player in history. But it’s the accolade and achievement of being a premiership captain that Maxwell should be noted for.
His road to becoming the captain of Australia’s biggest and most famous sporting club was an unlikely route. He was overlooked by all the clubs during the 2003 AFL draft, before being selected in the rookie draft.
Collingwood knew he had the perfect leadership qualities in him. That’s why, in 2009, Maxwell succeeded Scott Burns in becoming the Collingwood captain. It was a complete shock to most of the footballing world, but the Magpies were certain that Maxwell was the right man to lead them to their next flag.
Maxwell held up the premiership cup the very next year.
Current captain Scott Pendlebury applauded his predecessor.
“He would run through a wall for any of us,” Pendlebury said. “The amount of times he helped blokes out or did things that didn’t reward himself but made other players look good was countless. He is one of the greats of the footy club.”
The biggest criticism of Maxwell is his inability to play on an opponent or play on a smaller and less dangerous opponent. But to a certain extent that was also his biggest praise. His ability to read the play and help out his teammates was crucial.
Despite what Matthew Scarlett or Geelong thinks, both Maxwell and Tom Harley were very similar players. Their statistics are eerily similar throughout their careers, with Maxwell just ahead in most departments bar premiership medals.
Yet Tom Harley gets nowhere near the hatred Nick Maxwell does. Is it because Maxwell is a Collingwood captain? Is it because he doesn’t play on opponents? Or is it because he actually is a dud?
Who knows?
But Nick Maxwell’s story is one of never listening to the haters and never giving up on your dreams, despite not being as talented as the bloke next to you. As long as you have guts and determination, that’s all you need.
Who’s in your ultimate team? Pick the best team and compete with other fans for daily prizes on Draftstars. For the best odds on the game try out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Think. Is this a bet you really want to place? Set a deposit limit.