Geelong star Joel Selwood has been praised by his teammates after his maiden premiership win as captain.
Selwood’s win marked his fourth premiership, but his first since taking up the mantle as captain in 2012, succeeding Cameron Ling who retired after the 2011 premiership win.
On Saturday against Sydney, Selwood was the best player on the ground in the opening quarter, putting in another heroic performance as the Cats prevailed by 81 points at the MCG.
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Selwood finished with 26 disposals and six score involvements, while a goal in the final quarter saw virtually all of his teammates come running to celebrate with the 34-year-old.
The Cats stalwart said post-game he would speak with the club during the week ahead about whether he plays on in 2023.
Premiership teammate Zach Tuohy was confident Selwood could play on.
“You saw how he played, he’s definitely got more footy in him,” Tuohy told foxfooty.com.au.
“He’s a legend. He might be a legend of the AFL in an official capacity, I think he’s got to be in the talk, but he’s gone beyond a legend in our club. He’s whatever is above that.
“It’s an honour and a privilege to have played against him (at Carlton) and to see him up close is a joke.
“He’s got the reputation of being a good captain but you see it up close and it’s just outrageous. He’s done everything in the game but this is just the cherry on top of an outrageously good cake.”
Ruckman Rhys Stanley dubbed Selwood “the best person in football”.
“He’s just an unbelievable leader in every sense of the word,” Stanley told foxfooty.com.au.
“The way he carries himself at the football club, outside the football club, with his family, with our family, he just goes over and above.
“For a guy of that calibre, just to be able to run out next to him is an absolute privilege. To be able to hit the ball down to him a couple of times, I’ll be telling my kids about it for a long time.”
Like Tuohy and Stanley, Isaac Smith was someone who played against Selwood in previous years, but the two veterans have combined since Smith came across from Hawthorn at the end of 2020.
Smith won the Norm Smith Medal on Saturday to add to an impressive CV of his own, but was full of praise for his now-teammate.
“Probably what’s blown me away with Joel has nothing to do with this football. He’s one of the most humble, respectful, genuine people you’ll ever meet,” he said.
“To me, football aside, it’s irrelevant. He’s just a genuine good guy.”
