Hawthorn champion Jason Dunstall will become the 32nd player elevated to the Legend Status in the Australian Football Hall of Fame in Melbourne on June 18.

In his glittering 14-year career, Dunstall is arguably one of the greatest players the game has ever seen, kicking 1254 goals from 269 games, ranking third behind St Kilda and Sydney great Tony Lockett (1360) and Pies legend Gordon Coventry (1299).

Following in the footsteps of the aforementioned goalkicking stars, the Hawks champion will join both Lockett and Coventry as Legends in the Hall of Fame after being inducted in 2002.

Debuting in 1985 against Port Melbourne, the man known as 'Chief' made an immediate impact, slotting 3.3 as a 21-year-old and never looked back.

In his second season at the Hawks, Dunstall was a key cog in the premiership victory and added a further three medallions to his cabinet across the next five years.

During his impressive run, the No.19 collected three Coleman Medals, four All-Australian blazers, an AFLPA MVP award in 1992, four Peter Crimmins Medals and the captaincy toward the end of his career (1995-1998).

Known for his explosive pace and strong finishing skills, Dunstall kicked 100 goals in six separate seasons, going at a career average of 4.66 goals per game, with the best haul of 145 majors coming in 1992, which included a personal best 17 goals against Richmond in Round 7 at Waverly Park.

Since retiring in 1998, Dunstall has been a key feature across the media landscape, holding spots across theย Seven Network,ย 3AW, ย The Footy Showย and more recentlyย Fox Footyย and Triple M.

Dunstall also held the position of interim CEO at Hawthorn in 2004 and was a significant contributor to landing untried coach Alastair Clarkson, who led the club to four premierships during his time.

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - 1988: Jason Dunstall of the Hawks in action during a VFL season match held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, 1988 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Getty Images)

Dunstall credited his success largely to his Hawthorn teammates.

โ€œI'm a little overwhelmed at the moment,โ€ Dunstall said at a press conference on Monday.

โ€œIt's an incredible privilege. I feel very humble, almost to the point of embarrassment when you consider that there's just a tick over 30 Legends in the game.

โ€œIt's the highest honour you could imagine, so I feel incredibly grateful to the AFL.

โ€œTo sit amongst names that are synonymous with the game is incredibly humbling.โ€

AFL Commissioner Richard Goyder unanimously endorsed the recommendation of Dunstall's elevation to Legend Status, celebrating Dunstall and thanking him for his enormous contribution to the game.

โ€œIt is an enormous task to ask a new Legend to keep this news confidential for many months and we preferred for football to be able to celebrate him over the coming months, before his formal elevation in June at the Hall of Fame function,โ€ Goyder said.

โ€œJason is one of just six players in VFL / AFL history to have kicked more than 1000 goals, sitting third on the all-time list behind only fellow Legends Tony Lockett and Gordon Coventry.

โ€œAs a four-time premiership player for Hawthorn, four-time club best and fairest, three-time Coleman Medallist and 12-time leading goalkicker for the Hawks, he is a Legend by any measure in our sport.

โ€œIt is extraordinary to think he kicked double figures in 16 separate games and his 17 goals against Richmond at Waverley in 1992 is the equal second-highest tally in a VFL/AFL game in history.

โ€œForwards have always held a special appeal for footy fans through the generations and he sits easily alongside the great goalkickers of the past like Coventry, Pratt and Coleman, and names across the game like Robertson, Naylor and Farmer.

โ€œFootball congratulates Jason on his brilliance and thanks him for everything he has given football, as our next official Legend of the Game.โ€

Dunstall was the fastest of the six players in VFL/AFL history to kick 1000 goals, reaching the milestone in nine years and 142 days, nearly three years quicker than next-best Tony Lockett (12 years, 133 days).

Jason Dunstall's playing Career

Playing career:ย 1985-1998, Games:ย 269, Goals:ย 1254

Player honours

  • 2nd (equal) Brownlow Medal 1988, 1992, 3rd (equal) Brownlow Medal 1989
  • Hawthorn Best & Fairest 1988, 1989, 1992, 1993
  • Hawthorn captain 1995-98;
  • Premierships 1986, 1988, 1989, 1991
  • Club leading goalkicker 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1998
  • Coleman Medal 1988, 1989, 1992
  • Hawthorn Team of the Century
  • All Australian 1988, 1989, 1992, 1994
  • State of Origin - Victoria (3 games, 14 goals); Queensland (4 games, 10 goals); Allies (1 game, 0 goals).

The remaining inductees for this year's Hall of Fame class will be announced at the function in June.