From the Pocket: Gawn’s Case as the Greatest Ruck Ever Is Real

Righto, I never thought I’d be sitting here writing 1200 words singing the praises of a bloke who’s flogged my beloved Pies more times than I care to remember. But fair’s fair. Max Gawn has legitimate claims as the greatest ruck in Australian football history, and if you can’t admit that much even as a rusted-on Collingwood supporter, you’re not watching the game properly.

This isn’t a Melbourne puff piece. This is a bloke from Victoria Park in spirit, sitting here through gritted teeth, saying the truth out loud.

The Hall of Fame conversation

There’s over 300 names in the Australian Football Hall of Fame. Only six ruckmen have ever been elevated all the way to Legend status – Cazaly, Dyer, McIntosh, Kennedy Sr, Farmer and Nicholls. That’s rarefied air. That’s the absolute top shelf of the sport.

Gawn isn’t in that company yet because you can’t be inducted while you’re still lacing the boots up. But on footy substance alone? He’s knocking on that door with both fists.

Think about what the modern game asks of a ruckman compared to blokes running around in the ’50s and ’60s. Farmer and Nicholls were freaks of their era, no doubt. But Gawn’s doing it against athletes who train full-time, in a game that’s faster, more structured and more tactically brutal than anything those old legends faced. Carn the Pies, but credit where it’s due.

What actually makes him the best

Hitouts are the cheap stat everyone throws around, and sure, Gawn’s been elite there for a decade. But that’s not really the case for him. The real case is what he does after the tap.

He’s a genuine footballer who happens to be two metres tall. He reads the ball in flight better than most midfielders. He can go forward and kick bags on his day – just ask any Collingwood defender who’s had to deal with him crashing packs inside 50. He’s a leader, a premiership captain, and blokes at other clubs still rate him as the toughest matchup in the competition even now.

Compare that to the traditional ruck template – a bloke who taps it forward and jogs back to his position. Gawn broke that mould. He turned the ruck spot into a genuine matchwinning role, not just a facilitator role. That’s the difference between being very good and being the best there’s ever been.

The premiership factor

Say what you want about Melbourne as a footy club – and believe me, as a Pies man I’ve got a few things to say – but 2021 happened. Gawn was the best player on the ground in a flag win, best on ground in front of the family, captain of the club, the whole package.

You can’t be the greatest ruck in history without winning the big one. Nicholls did it. Farmer’s Geelong and East Perth sides were dynasties. Gawn’s tick that box too. That matters more than any pub argument about hitout numbers.

The longevity argument

Here’s the bit that should really do your head in if your putting him up against the greats. Gawn’s not some early-career phenom who peaked at 24 and faded. The bloke is still arguably the best ruck in the competition well into his thirties, still leading Melbourne around, still being the first name written on their team sheet every single week.

That kind of sustained dominance is rare in any position, let alone the most physically demanding job on the ground. Rucks cop it week in, week out – big bodies smashing into them at every centre bounce, every stoppage, every boundary throw-in. To still be the best at that in your mid-thirties is definately something special.

Does Collingwood have a horse in this race?

Look, I’d love to sit here and tell you Darcy Cameron’s building a Hall of Fame case. He’s a good honest ruckman who’s done a job for us, no complaints. But is he in Gawn’s stratosphere? Come on. Let’s not insult anyone’s intelligence.

And that’s sort of the point, isn’t it? Every club in the competition has had to game-plan specifically around neutralising Gawn for the best part of ten years. Our midfield coaches have spent hours on whiteboards trying to work out how to stop him dominating first use of the footy. When one player forces that much attention from every opposition club, year after year, that’s a pretty strong sign of where he sits historically.

The old guard versus the new guard

I get why some of the older heads want to stick with Farmer or Nicholls as the greatest ever. Nostalgia is a powerful thing in this sport, and rightly so – we should never forget those blokes built the foundations of the ruck position as we know it.

But footy evolves. The game Gawn plays now bears almost no resemblance to the game those legends played. More speed, more precision, more scrutiny, more athletic opposition. To be the standout performer in your role across an era like this one is arguably harder than doing it in a slower, less scientific version of the sport.

Should of been more umpires paying free kicks against blokes holding him in marking contests over the years if you ask me, but that’s a different story for another day.

Where this leaves the debate

Is Max Gawn the greatest ruck in Australian football history? I reckon he’s got as strong a case as anyone who’s ever pulled on the boots. The premiership, the individual brilliance, the longevity, the way he changed what’s expected of a ruckman – it all stacks up.

Do I love saying that as a Collingwood supporter? Not really. Would I rather be writing about Darcy Cameron dominating him in a prelim final in a few weeks time? Absolutely. But this column’s about being fair dinkum with you lot, not just barracking blind.

Carn the Pies regardless – and here’s hoping we get the chance to knock him and Melbourne off in September one more time before he calls it a day. Because if we’re being honest, that’s probably the only thing that could genuinely dent his legacy at this point.