SIXTY seconds into his first match in blue, Chris Judd had four touches. Carlton fans, who had not lost a smile from their face in four months, moved from smug smirk to delirious yelp.

The only moment to temper the warm Carlton bonhomie brought by the arrival of the league's best player to the competition's worst-performing club was the fall of another Carlton player.

Andrew Walker injured the same shoulder that required surgery last year. He will have scans today to ascertain if the damage was more significant than bruising and whether it will require surgery.

Marc Murphy was reported for making high front-on contact to Bulldog Mitch Hahn. Murphy was a No. 1 draft pick, Walker pick two and Chris Judd pick three. But they all play second fiddle to Judd. Yesterday was not about them, little at Carlton now is about anyone but Judd.

Four months after the signature came the game and more than 10,000 came to watch at Princes Park. All the better for Carlton winning 13.15 (93) to 12.12 (84) in a comeback victory.

It was the final game at the suburban ground looking as we know it. The old Heatley Stand is about to come down but they had not come for sentimentality yesterday, they came for the player of today and tomorrow.

He ran on the ground and they squealed. He touched the ball and they gasped. After that first minute, they were giddy.

They had come to see Judd play and from the outset, it seemed he was the only one doing so.

"I was just trying to get the ball away from me," Judd laughed of his prolific opening.

"I took a mark and my legs were that heavy I couldn't kick over a jam tin. It was a bit of a shock to the system being out there again but good to get through it."

Judd played in six-minute bursts through each quarter and collected 20 possessions.

He was the best player on the ground inasmuch as he is the best player on any ground but he was not the standout player yesterday. Had he played more than those bursts, he would have been.

"I thought at three-quarter-time, we were going to cotton-wool him but the high-performance manager Justin Cordy said he was right to go for another six minutes, he would prefer another six minutes in his legs, so we played him for about five and a half and that was it," coach Brett Ratten said.

"I think it is always good to get back after a bit of a lay-off and touch the ball. At the start, we tried to get him into the game and he had about six possessions in a minute. It all went to plan for Chris and all worked out really well."

Judd completed the game moving as we are accustomed to him moving without obvious restriction to his lateral movement or pace. He should have goaled in the opening quarter but it was disallowed, he did goal in the third.

Judd is not allowed to play next week in the VFL practice match but his vice-captain Nick Stevens might.

Irrespective, he is now set to play against Richmond in round one and according to Ratten will be able to play closer to 85% of the game, not the shorter bursts of yesterday.

Judd was the reason more than 10,000 people turned out on a warm afternoon for a game of football and was the focus of attention but the day was of no less moment for the game of Matthew Kreuzer.

The No. 1 draft pick from last year was influential in the ruck and even in the few games he has played over summer for Carlton, looks increasingly comfortable with the game.

Jake Edwards, son of Alan "Butch" Edwards, a flamboyant centre-half forward with a clunking grab and no knees by the time he finished his career at Richmond, Collingwood and Footscray, yesterday suggested he might help fill that role. He kicked a couple of goals and took some strong pack marks.

The Bulldogs were missing six of their best starting 22 and were overrun as the game wore on.

Jason Akermanis had 16 touches to half-time and to that point, was the game's best player.