That came in the 19th round contest at Etihad Stadium when the six players - Michael Jamison (40), Levi Casboult (41), Zach Tuohy (42), Simon White (43), Andrew Carrazzo (44) and Aaron Joseph (45) all took to the field against the Swans.
Significantly, all five members of the 40s club were originally taken by Carlton as rookie selections.
A proud member of Carlton’s historic “Club 40+”, Aaron Joseph, was taken aback when told of the stat.
“This means a fair bit for me being a rookie, because it’s a long way from rookie status to playing seniors,” Joseph said.
“It’s possible that being a rookie makes you work harder, and to know that 40-45 was represented out on the field is a great thing. It’s just a pity Davey Ellard (46) wasn’t out there also.”
Joseph, now 31 senior games shy of getting his name on the No.45 locker beneath another uncompromising Carlton competitor Anthony Franchina, unashamedly referred to his fellow 40s guernsey wearers as “being up the VIP end of the locker room”.
“That’s where the workhorses are and we say that the blokes up the other end are fed with a spoon, don’t really work hard and are part of the playful pen,” he dryly suggested.
Resident Carlton statistician Stephen Williamson has unearthed the following stats in respect of the guernsey numbers 40-plus.
Williamson advises that;
- the first Carlton footballer to wear the guernsey number 40 or above into a senior match was the former Seven voicover man the late Don Rainsford, against St Kilda in the 11th round of 1959 - the year reserve grade teams were introduced and forced the increase in numbers;
- Stan Harrison (42) and Ron Stone (44) were the first two Carlton footballers to wear the guernsey numbers 40+ into the same match, against south Melbourne in Round 14, 1965 at Princes Park;
- the first time three Carlton players wore 40+ into the same match came against Footscray at the Western Oval in Round 17, 1966, with Paul Constance (40), Ron Stone (44) and Peter Gilbert (50) all taking to the field;
- four Carlton players - Robert Walls (42), David McKay (43), John Warden (46) and Andy Lukas (49) - wore 40+ guernseys into the same match, the eighth round of 1971 versus Richmond at the MCG;
- the first time five Carlton players turned out wearing 40+ came in the 12th round of that same season when Walls (42), McKay (43), Peter Fyffe (45), John Warden (46) and John O’Connell (50) all ran out for the match against North Melbourne at Princes Park; six Carlton players wore 40+ for the first time in Round 22, 1989 versus Brisbane at Carrara - Mick Kennedy (43), Justin Madden (44), Warren McKenzie (45), Andrew McKinnon (47), Ashley Matthews (48) and Phil Poursanidis (49); and
- the highest number ever worn by a Carlton player into a senior match is 56, worn by Ang Christou in the Round 22, 1990 match with Richmond.
Curiously, guernsey numbers were first worn when Carlton and Essendon players took to the MCG for the 1911 second semi-final between Carlton and Essendon. The numbers appeared on the scoreboard that afternoon, given that the first edition of The Football Record didn’t roll off the presses until the following year.
While seven Carlton players are yet to have worn the 40+ guernseys into the same game, David Ellard (46) is still in the mix to make it happen.
