IF NOT for a contentious father-son rule change late in the piece, Bryce Gibbs would have been wearing the tri-colours of the Adelaide Crows when he lined up for his 100th AFL game.

He will, of course, be wearing the old dark navy blue of Carlton when he reaches the milestone on Sunday and he couldn't be happier with the way things have turned out.

Six years ago, the Crows' recruiters were licking their lips at the prospect of nabbing the highly-rated son of Glenelg champion Ross Gibbs as their first ever father-son recruit.

However, their dismay at the alteration to the rule that denied them first call on the gifted onballer was matched only by the delight of the Blues, who duly snapped him up with the first overall pick of the 2006 NAB AFL Draft. 

"At the time it was a bit exciting with the speculation that I could have gone father-son," Gibbs, who grew up not far from Adelaide's West Lakes headquarters, says.

"Around that time it would have been great to stay at home and play in front of the family and friends every week, but once that decision was made by the AFL that I was to go into the draft, it was basically left there.

"I knew that I could end up anywhere and I ended up at Carlton and I'm very glad I did.

"I'm pretty lucky to get the opportunity to play 100 games at this club."

Adelaide, stung by the turn of events, vowed to leave no stone unturned in trying to lure him back across the border in the ensuing years.

Gibbs doesn't know if the Crows stayed true to their promise and he doesn't much care.

"I'm very happy being a Carlton player and loving the Melbourne lifestyle," he says.

"I've always signed my contracts well before I've been out of contract, so that's a sign that I'm happy and I love this club.

"I'd love to be a one-club player.

"It's an honour to play for a club like Carlton with its proud history and to play 100 games and to get your name on a locker with some of the legends of the club is pretty special."

That's music to the ears of Blues' fans, who have delighted in watching him grow as a footballer ever since he made his debut against Richmond in round one of the 2007 season.

"My first kick was a goal, so that was pretty lucky," he says of his debut.

"I started on the bench and running on for the first time, there were about 50 or 60,000 people at the 'G … I didn't really know what was going on.

"By the end of the game I found myself in a back pocket and Matthew Richardson was down there giving me a bit of lip. I didn't really know what to do."

Although he took a little time to find his feet, Gibbs stayed in the team and went on to play all 22 games in a disappointing year for the club.

Carlton won just four matches, finished 15th on the ladder and Denis Pagan, the coach who had installed young Gibbs in the leadership group in his first season, lost his job.

Gibbs has missed just one game since then and he's amazed at the transformation the club has undergone since his tough initiation.

"A lot has changed, obviously coming to the club we were at the bottom of the ladder and really struggled to win games of footy," he says.

"You would come off the ground hoping we were competitive, but five years has been a long time and we're getting that winning culture back in the footy club."

"We expect now to take these opportunities and take the club back to where it was 10 to 20 years ago."

Gibbs' versatility has seen him used in a range of positions over the past 99 games.

He's aware of the occasional frustration that has caused Carlton supporters, who call for him to be used predominantly as a ball-hunting midfielder, but he maintains it's all part of his football education.

"I'm still looking to improve my game, whether it's in defence, midfield or forward," he says.

"I've had a lot of roles over the journey and I'm sure there will be a lot more to come.

"Ratts throws me those [tagging] challenges every now and then and it's good to play on those types of players. They take you to the ball and I love those one-on-one match-ups. I think I'm playing my best footy when I'm playing on good opposition.

"I'm sure I'll be put into the midfield more and more over the next few years, but I've just got to bide my time."