One of football's most famous families will equal another for most games, combined, between a grandfather, father and son at the highest level this weekend.
Jack Silvagni, playing in his 144th match of AFL football, will take the total amount of games played between him, his famous father Stephen, and Stephen's famous father, Sergio, to 695, a number matched only by the revered Kennedys.
It's the latest, timely reminder of the serendipity and romance attached to the father-son draft concession, and, it's as fitting a time as any to take a stroll down memory lane and appreciate the generational greatness that bonds families - players and fans alike.
***Disclaimer: this list is specific to grandfather-father-son or father-son lineages. Bands of brothers, such as the Danihers and Selwoods, cousins, such as the Riewoldts, and marital bonds, such as the one that famously joined the Tuck and Ablett clans have not been considered as one unit.***
7. Watsons
Few players have burst onto the scene the way a young Tim Watson did.
In 1977, at the tender age of 15, Watson played the first of his 307 games for Essendon. By the time of his permanent retirement at the end of 1994, he had three premierships, four club best and fairests (one in a premiership year) and the equivalent of what is now known as the Leigh Matthews Trophy in his back pocket. He's an Australian Football Hall of Fame member, and the ruck-rover in Essendon's stacked Team of the Century.
Tim's son Jobe joined the Bombers as a father-son selection at the 2002 National Draft. He would go on to win All-Australian selection twice, and claim the Crichton Medal as the Bombers' best and fairest player three times. He followed in his father's footsteps in skippering the side, and was named the AFLPA's Best Captain in 2012.
The Watsons are Windy Hill royalty.
