Luke Hodge voted the south-west's best AFL player in recent poll

And the Colac product also seems to be the south-west people's champion.

The four-time premiership player topped The Standard's poll on the best export to play at the elite level since the turn of the millennium.

Of the 330 votes cast by readers the dual Norm Smith Medallist collected 40.61 per cent or 134 of the votes.

Three-time Brisbane Lions premiership player Jonathan Brown came in second with 28.66 per cent (94) of votes.

Melbourne's Jordie McKenzie (9.09 per cent, 30 votes) was third with Hawthorn four-time premiership hero Jordan Lewis (7.88 per cent, 26 votes) next.

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Marty Gleeson (six votes), Ben Cunnington (four), Max Rooke, Chris Heffernan, Jeremy Cameron, Hugh McLuggage, Luke Vogels (three), Scott Lucas, Liam Picken, David Haynes, Josh Corbett (two) all received multiple votes.

Tom Cole, David Astbury, Brent Moloney, Lewis Taylor, Gary Rohan, Rowan Marshall, Willem Drew, Sam Walsh, Billie Smedts and Dan Nicholson all polled one.

On The Standard's Facebook page a lot of the comments picked Hodge and Brown as the two clear standouts.

"Hodge just over Brown. Both magnificent players and hard as a iron bar," David Cruickshank wrote.

Ian Duerden said "Hodge or Brown, flip a coin, both were champions."

Warren Keane picked the pair and Lewis from the retired crop but threw up some challengers to their thrones.

"Huey (Hugh MccLuggage), (Sam) Walsh and (Rowan) Marshall are going to put some serious pressure on the first three by the time they have finished their careers," he wrote.

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Hodge forged a remarkable career at Hawthorn after being drafted with the first pick in the 2001 National Draft before heading to Brisbane in 2018 and finishing his 346-game career in 2019.

The silky left-footer was picked in a staggering top three that featured Collingwood premiership winner Luke Ball and two-time Brownlow and fellow Norm Smith medallist Chris Judd.

The three-time premiership skipper is widely regarded as one of the most respected players, particularly as a captain, to ever play the sport.

"When the Hawks devoted the first choice in the 2001 NAB AFL National Draft to Luke Hodge they got not just a great player but a great leader, too," Leigh Matthews told AFL.com.au in 2010.

His football resume speaks volumes of what he achieved and shows why south-west fans adore him.

Apart from premiership successes, team and individual, Hodge is also a three-time All-Australian (2005, '08 and 2010 as captain).

He won two Peter Crimmins Medals as Hawthorn's best and fairest in 2005 and 2010, was best clubman in '13 and most consistent in '17.

The half-back flanker was Hawks captain from 2011-16 where he earned the nickname "the General" for his leadership on and off the field. He also won the 2014 AFLPA's Best Captain Award.

His crowning achievement was the 2019 Madden Medal, which is awarded to a retiring player who has best demonstrated on-field excellence, personal development and growth, as well as community spirit over the course of his their playing career.

His last senior coach Chris Fagan, who was also a big part of his career at Hawthorn, told the AFLPA earlier this year a few things he noticed about Hodge over their time together.

One was his professionalism, another was his development as a leader and the surprising one when he went to Brisbane was what sort of impact he could have on others in a short amount of time.

"Initially, I think people were shocked that Luke was so generous with his time. He certainly didn't walk in the door saying, 'I'm Luke Hodge, football legend - you get to know me'," he said.

"But rather he made the effort to get to know our group. He spent those early weeks and months working flat out to get to know the team and build relationships with our players.

"It was no surprise that before too long he was highly respected among the group. Not because of what he'd done in football, but because of the sort of person he was and because he was prepared to take time to invest in people."

Stories like that, added together with the extensive resume is why Hodge is so universally loved.

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