LEIGH Matthews said if he were picking a team from every player he has ever seen, Michael Voss would be the first man chosen.
Matthews made this tribute on Wednesday night as Voss was being inducted as just the third Brisbane Lions Legend at the club's Hall of Fame dinner.
The two have a close association, with Matthews the coach and Voss the captain of the Lions' hat-trick of premierships from 2001-2003, but Matthews chose his words carefully.
The man officially recognized as the best player of the 20th century, Matthews mentioned some modern day greats, and seemed to hint that Gary Ablett Jnr might be a personal favourite, but he still plumped for Voss as his best for a combination of reasons.
"I have been around footy for about four decades, seen some unbelievable players in the '70s and '80s and more recently Wayne Carey, Gary Ablett snr, Gary Ablett jnr – I'm glad he plays this century, not last I might add," Matthews said with a grin.
"That aside, if I was picking a side from scratch, Michael Voss would be the first player I would pick, of any player that I've seen play in my time in football. He's a winner."
The statement was met with raucous applause at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre, and even seemed to take Voss aback.
"I'm still trying to absorb that," Voss said shortly afterwards.
"To hear that from Leigh, that's amazing. Outside my dad, he's been another father figure for me, a wonderful mentor, and taught me to be a leader of men."
On a night when 10 Lions were inducted into the club’s Hall of Fame, Matthews lauded Voss for his power and leadership qualities.
He described Voss as a " a highly skilled, magnificent footballer, but he was also a human battering ram".
He said a Voss tackle on Essendon's Damien Peverill was applied with more power than Matthews had ever seen.
Despite his fabulous 289-game career, Matthews also said he believed Voss never reached his full potential after shattering his leg against Fremantle in 1998.
Absolute privilege to receive legend status @brisbanelions Hall of Fame tonight. Blown away #bunton #murray #voss #wow
— Michael Voss (@voss03) May 21, 2014"If he hadn't broken his leg in 1998, whatever he did after, he would have done better, because he always had little issues with different parts of his body that were the aftermath of that broken leg," he said.
"He was such an outstanding on-field general. As a captain he developed a great understanding of what makes good teams great."
