Few players have endured such a difficult first 100 games in the AFL than Carlton's Jarrad Waite, who this Sunday will join his later father Vin in the 100 game club for his beloved Blues.

Waite arrived at Carlton - as a father/son draft pick - at the end of the 2001 season just as the league's equal most successful club was about to plunge into the darkest period in its history.

In the next six seasons - amidst record fines and the loss of draft picks for salary cap cheating - the Blues would finish in the bottom two on five occasions and would not only go through three presidents during that time in John Elliott, Ian Collins and Graham Smorgon but also the axing of two coaches in Wayne Brittain and Denis Pagan.

So it's little wonder that Waite has played in just 26 victories from his 99 games to date - with seven of those wins coming this season as the Blues' finally begin to emerge from their wilderness under new coach Brett Ratten.

And such has been the turnover of players during Waite's time at the club that just four players still remain at Princes Park from the time he first arrived at the Blues in late 2001 - Brendan Fevola, Ryan Houlihan, Bret Thornton and Simon Wiggins.

Waite admitted on Wednesday he has endured a tough start to his career but was proud to have survived and now be part of an improving Blues' line-up.

"I wasn't sure if I would ever get to 100 games," Waite said.

"A lot of players have come and gone and that is a bit daunting but it's good to have made it so far."

"I probably came at the worse time in 2001 when all that stuff happened and it's been difficult but it just makes you work harder and look more forward to the times that are coming up ahead."

In fact Waite believes great times lie ahead for the Blues, who this year have emerged as a surprise finals contender in Ratten's first full year as coach.

"Hopefully the next few years will be a bit more exciting," he said.

And as the Blues have begun to win back respect this year so have Waite's stocks soared - as evidenced by the fact he played for Victoria against The Dream Team in this year's Hall of Fame game.
"It's good to mingle with blokes from other teams and in the Vic team it was really good to see how guys like (Jonathan) Brown and (Adam) Goodes trained and you try and learn off them and I have been lucky in that regard."

"It has made me more professional and playing in defence I am playing on the game's best players and each game I am learning from them what it takes to become a better player."

Ratten says Waite - whose father Vin played 153 games for the Blues between 1966-75 - is on the verge of becoming one of the game's elite players.

"That is the next step for Jarrad," he said.

"He is close to breaking into the top 20 players in the AFL and his consistency has really improved along with the way he goes about it."

"He is really starting to believe in his ability and when he is on he is fantastic to watch with his run and his marking and his execution with his feet is very exciting."