It is somewhat ironic that one of the competition’s best ball winners of the last decade picked up just two possessions in his AFL debut. Then Essendon Captain James Hird presented Watson with the match ball anyway.

“I was pretty nervous but now that they’ve given me the ball, I’ll be able to get a touch on it," Watson said immediately after that debut match.

Despite the unflattering stats column, it’s a game he’s never forgotten.

“I just remember being overawed by the whole experience … those are the things you remember,” Watson said as he announced his retirement.

Jobe Watson with then Captain James Hird after making his debut in 2003.

Watson arrived at the Bombers as the son of a Club champion, but he leaves a Legend in his own right. 

His large frame as a junior made him an imposing match-up for under age players around Melbourne. He attended Xavier College and played with the Sandringham Dragons in the TAC Cup. Essendon List Manager Adrian Dodoro liked what he saw and almost 15 years ago to the day, the Bombers  announced another Watson was joining their ranks. “He is about 190cm tall, strong in close and hard at it. He reads the play well and really is an excellent talent,” Dodoro said at the time.

Throughout those first three seasons, Watson found it tough to break in to an Essendon side hoping to rekindle its dominance from earlier in the decade.  "I was starting from a long way back.  They used to give me a five minute head start in time trials," he said.

But Dodoro’s words rang true in 2006 as Watson became a mainstay in the Bombers line-up. His kicking at times drew criticism but his ball winning and handballing were elite. Extra time spent in the gym helped launch his career.

““Ray Giles really changed my whole philosophy on life,” Watson said.

“I got everything out of my body and I was totally dedicated to this sport.”

In 2009 he won the first of his three best and fairest awards and a year later he was appointed Captain. "It's a tremendous honour - it's not something you aim to do as a young fella but it's a really humbling experience," Watson said at the time. "You look at the people who've gone before you, the history of the club and just to be the Captain of the Club, it's a surreal-type feeling. To be voted by my peers and team-mates and for them to have the confidence in me that I was ready really helped me." 

He led the Bombers to the finals in 2011 and 2014. Along the way he won the Brownlow Medal in 2012 and was named in the All-Australian team on two occasions. At his best he was one of the leading players in the competition. But upon his retirement he concedes some of the awareness that made him a champion, has deserted him. “The game has sped up, it used to be slow for me,” he said.

Watson played around a third of his career under the cloud of the supplements investigation. There were daily headlines, twists and turns, and unprecedented pressure on the playing group.

“My parents have always displayed certain behaviour and in the position of leadership I’ve always tried to emulate a way of behaving,” Watson said.

“I think my teammates and the people around me, when I interact with people they’ve picked that up. That is important to me.

“Despite everything you do as a player on the field, there is always a way of behaving.

“I feel like that will be part of my legacy.

“I certainly always felt we had enormous support from the Essendon Football Club and the fan base.

“The longer it went, the wider that community grew.

“More and more people started to feel sympathy for the players but given the circumstances and the nature of the story and how it took the path that it did, it meant that there was such hysteria attached with it. 

“People were trying to form opinions off news headlines and that’s a really difficult thing to do. I can understand how people had such anger towards the circumstances but when you’re in the middle of it and you’re still trying to live your life through it, it becomes very difficult.

“You see people for who they really are when they’re under pressure and I don’t think I behaved any differently from a core value point of view under real pressure.

“I think people around me recognise that.”

After spending 2016 away from the game, Watson said his decision to return was built on a desire to finish on his own terms.

“I’ve really appreciated and really enjoyed seeing the enthusiasm of these young guys, how it’s changed, what they’ve done, what John has been able to do, the supporters – how they’ve enjoyed having us return," he said.

“I always focused on leaving the Club in a better place than I found it.

“Despite everything that happened I feel like the Club is in that position now."

Watson sings the song after the Bombers win over Hawthorn in round one this season.

In retirement Watson said he’d split his time between Melbourne and New York.

He didn’t rule out staying involved with football at some point.

Watson has at least three games left in his career and hopefully finals.

His premiership dream still lingers.

“This group is the most talented that I’ve been part of,” he said.

“Hopefully it’s this year, if it’s not I think the Club is in a great position moving forward.

“It’s time to retire and move on. I’ve had a wonderful time and experience from a child who spent my life around the Football Club, to fulfilling a dream to play for the Club and then to be the Captain of the Club.

“It has been an incredible journey for myself and my family.

“I know the time is up and I think the worst thing you can do is lie to yourself and try and convince yourself that it’s not but deep down you know that it is.

“I’m really excited to play out the rest of the year with the group but this will be my last year with the Football Club and I’d like to thank all of the fans, supporters and people who have played a significant role in my career. 

“It’s time to move on and say thank you and goodbye."