IT MIGHT not have got off to a winning start, but there was plenty of evidence at the MCG on Thursday night to suggest the Chris Judd era at Carlton will be a successful one.

Judd was prominent in the centre for the first three quarters but - clearly still not 100 per cent after off-season groin surgery - was later moved to half-forward as he ran out of steam in the final term.

“I think there was a lot of expectation and maybe some pressure on him,” Brett Ratten said in assessment of his prized recruit’s first hitout.

“But I thought his performance tonight … towards the end he came on at half-forward and he nearly changed the game. I thought ‘here we go he might swing this in a matter of four or five minutes’ and that’s sort of all we had left.

“He’s a very talented player and … he will get better each week as we go forward.”

Ratten stayed true to his pre-game forecast of about 75 per cent game time for Judd and said that figure would be increased another 10 per cent next week when the Blues take on St Kilda next week.

For the record, Judd finished with 22 possessions (nine kicks and 13 handballs) for five clearances, five inside 50’s and he also laid five tackles.

His silky skills have most definitely crossed the country with him, with his efficiency rate near 100 per cent in the first half.

However, he is obviously still working towards full fitness and doesn’t yet have the engine or the speed burst he displayed pre-groin injury.

If the 24-year-old was nervous about finding his first touch in his new colours he didn’t have to fret for too long as he was involved in the very first play of the game. 

Marc Murphy welcomed his new skipper with a hand pass from the first bounce with Judd handballing off and then buttering up for his first kick a few seconds later with the Blue half of the crowd wildly cheering both possessions.

Judd was brilliant at times from an individual standpoint, but perhaps the most gratifying aspect of his play for Blues’ supporters was how much better he made his new teammates.

No passage of play illustrated this point better than the one that led to Eddie Betts’ second goal midway through the second quarter.

The skipper was involved early with a short pass to Marc Murphy on the half-back flank, ran hard to half-forward where he received a hand pass from Kade Simpson and then slipped a handball to Betts who was clear and kicked truly.

Young players who may have had a second’s doubt in possession last year were galvanised by his commanding presence and hard running.

It may not have been the start they wanted, but Carlton fans loudly cheered Judd from the moment he led the Blues out onto the MCG until the moment he led them off and he certainly gave them plenty of reasons for optimism in between.