Carlton honour captain and long-time player Patrick Cripps with life membership

Carlton have recognised the achievements of captain Patrick Cripps with the Northampton product being awarded life membership at the club earlier this week. Cripps was one of five people awarded with life memberships, alongside his long-time teammate Sam Docherty, as the pair had reached the 10 year and 100 game mark at the club. The 29-year-old was presented a plaque for his life membership at the Spirit of Carlton’s Hall of Fame function, where another Blue legend was recognised with Brendan Fevola being inducted into the club’s hall of fame. During the ceremony, Carlton president Luke Sayers commended both Cripps and Docherty for their achievements and commitment to the club. “Patrick and Sam have both led the football club during arguably our most challenging period, and are now relentless in their determination to drive us to where we are striving to be,” he said. “It is so fitting that two fantastic footballers, quality people and especially great friends, receive life membership of the Carlton Football Club alongside one another.” Sayers further praised Cripps for the impact he has had on and off the field during his 11 seasons with the Blues. “Patrick cares deeply for not just the on-field success we are pursuing, but to make the Carlton Football Club a consistent beacon of high performance, centred around a genuine culture that will live on well into the future,” he said. “That is the true legacy of a leader, and we congratulate Patrick, his wife Monique and the entire Cripps family on his achievement tonight.” In a sit down between the two new life members, Cripps talked about receiving the recognition for his time with the club. “With a life membership, you always talk about having an impact at a club, the legacy you leave or an impact you have on a footy club,” he said. “To get a life membership, it’s probably the first step in a way that you’ve done a significant impact at the club and it’s pretty rewarding.” During 11 seasons with the Blues, Cripps has cemented his legacy as one of the all-time greats, the 2022 Brownlow medallist, three-time All Australian and four-time John Nicholls Medal winner. Cripps has served as Carlton’s captain for five seasons now, being a co-captain from 2019-21 and has been the solo captain since the 2022 season. The former Ram previously held the record for games played with Carlton without appearing in the finals, until last year when the Baggers fell one game short of reaching the grand final. Cripps, who celebrated his 29th birthday on Monday, also revealed at the function that he and wife Monique are expecting a baby girl, their first child, due next month.