WHAT a first 100 games it has been.

Patrick Cripps - alongside Dale Thomas - will become Carlton’s latest centurion when he leads his side out onto the MCG this Saturday.

It’s time to wind back the clock and take a look back at an extraordinary start to the career of Carlton’s co-captain.

Setting the standard

When it comes to being a contested ball beast, Cripps is breaking new ground.

That was never more evident in 2018, when he broke Patrick Dangerfield’s home-and-away record for most contested possessions in a season with 388.

When you look deeper, Cripps is the only player to have collected over 1,500 contested possessions within his first 100 games.

Making JNM history

In 2015, Patrick Cripps - in just his second season - became the second-youngest player to win the John Nicholls Medal — Carlton’s best-and-fairest award.

The youngest? The award’s namesake.

Cripps backed it up last year, winning his second John Nicholls Medal to become the 22nd multiple winner. Once again, he was the second-youngest player to achieve the feat behind Geoff Southby.

Should he win a third this season, he will become just the eighth player to achieve the feat.

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The 2018 John Nicholls Medallist with John Nicholls. #JNM2018

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Awards aplenty

To go with his two John Nicholls Medals, Cripps was named joint captain of the Club last year alongside Sam Docherty, making him the youngest captain in the AFL.

He received his first of many All Australian nods in 2018, while finishing second in both the AFLPA and AFLCA MVPs.

Cripps was also named in the 22under22 team in 2015 and 2016, while finishing fourth in the Brownlow Medal last year.

Leading from the front

Last year was a difficult one for all involved at Ikon Park — but it didn’t stop Carlton’s No.9.

In that top-four finish of the Brownlow Medal, Cripps polled in nine losses throughout the 2018 season: the equal-most in history, alongside Gary Ablett in 2012.

The 24-year-old has proven to be a significant poller at the Brownlow Medal in his opening five seasons, registering 49 votes from his opening 81 games.

After another standout personal campaign, expect that number to soar in 2019.

St Kilda’s Cripp-tonite

It’s appropriate that Cripps’ 100th game will be against St Kilda.

After all, it’s a team which he has arguably enjoyed playing against the most since starting out in 2014.

Cripps enjoyed his first AFL win against St Kilda in Round 4, 2015: a game in which he also was nominated for the NAB AFL Rising Star.

He has averaged over 30 disposals, eight clearances and a goal a game against the Saints: he’ll be hoping for more of the same on Saturday.

The AFLX GOAT

We’ll always have that fateful night in February.

With 96 points, Cripps was the winner of the ‘Superboot’ as the leading scorer over the course of the night at Marvel Stadium.

After the announcement that the AFLX tournament wouldn’t feature in 2020, we think that means that Cripps goes down as the greatest of all time.