The freakishly talented full-forward was part of a group that formed one of the powerhouse teams of the 1970s and believes there are similarities between that era and the current-day premiers.
“I think as far as Hawthorn’s concerned at the moment they’d rate with any side,” Hudson said.
“They’ve got such strength all the way down the field. When you look at the Hawthorn of the 70s – a lot of people rated that as probably the greatest era of all time.”
“[But] this side has got the potential to be as good if not better than that team in the 70s. The strength of the team in the 70s is also the strength of the team today in that there are magnificent players on every line.”
Hudson played in the 1971 premiership side and said the feature of Alastair Clarkson’s outfit was its evenness across the park.
“There is virtually no line that is a standout weakness. That is the strength of Hawthorn at the moment – so many good players.”
But the Hawk legend stopped short of predicting another era of Hawthorn dominance, pointing to Geelong’s loss in last year’s grand final as an example of how a quality side can still be beaten.
“You’re only as good as your last performance. It’s still handy to have ability. If you haven’t got ability you haven’t got much at all but I think this side has certainly got the ability to do it,” he said.
“I think they’d learn a lot from Geelong last year. I felt sorry for Geelong in one way. They were expected to back up and they didn’t ... Hopefully our blokes can learn a lesson from that or take something out of it that will enable them to go back to back.”
Hudson played for Hawthorn from 1967 to 1974 and returned for one season in 1977. He kicked 727 goals from 129 games.
