Hawthorn premiership player Ken Judge has died of cancer, aged 58.

Judge won a VFL flag with the Hawks in 1983, in what was his first season with the club after being recruited from East Fremantle in the WAFL.

He played four seasons in total with the Hawks and featured in their losing 1984 and 1985 grand final teams during a 72-match stint with the VFL/AFL powerhouse.

Judge moved to the Brisbane Bears in their inaugural season in 1987 and played 17 matches with the club across two years.

He later coached the Hawks between 1996 and 1999, taking the club to the finals in his first season in charge, before he was West Coast coach in 2000 and 2001.

He also won a WAFL premiership with East Fremantle as a player and coached the club to two grand final victories.

Judge, who turned 58 on Friday, maintained a presence in Australian rules football as a long-serving commentator with the ABC.

ABC Grandstand broadcaster Clint Wheeldon said he was "indebted" to Judge, who he worked alongside in calling Eagles and Fremantle matches.

"He made you a better caller by making you accountable," he said.

"He was outstanding in being able to succinctly sum up where teams were at."

Wheeldon said he would miss Judge "terribly", describing him as being "intensely loyal" and a man "who stood by his principles and stood by the truth".

He felt Judge's experience as both a player and coach gave him a valuable insight when commenting on AFL.

"He could cut through the 'sport speak' to get to the issues where sports people were at," Wheeldon said.

Grandstand's Corbin Middlemas highlighted the influence Judge had on his commentary career.

"He made me a better broadcaster I think in every single way and always wanted me to get the best out of myself and to push me a little bit further," he said.

"My heart breaks particularly for the family and for everybody that has known him for a lifetime."

Hawthorn pays tribute to Judge's Hawks service

Coaching career ... Ken Judge sings the Hawthorn club song along with Shane Crawford after a Hawks victory in 1999 ( Getty Image: Stuart Milligan/Allsport )

Hawthorn chief executive Stuart Fox said the Hawks would remember Judge's contribution to the club with great fondness.

"Ken touched the lives of so many people at Hawthorn and in the wider football community," Fox said in a statement.

"He had a profound impact on our club and his legacy will live on at Hawthorn."

Eagles chief executive Trevor Nisbett expressed the club's sadness at the passing of Judge.

"Ken coached our club at a challenging period in our history, but was a strong contributor in his time here," he said in a statement.

"He was also a significant contributor to football in general as a player, coach and commentator."

Judge served as a Carlton assistant coach to David Parkin when it won its most recent flag in 1995.

Parkin paid tribute to the Judge's toughness and credited him with having played a key role in the Blues' premiership success.

"In terms of the Carlton impact, Ken was a ferocious competitor," he said in a statement.

"He was the agent provocateur through 1995. We had a fair few 'yes men' around the place but Ken was never a yes man. He always had an edge.

"He was a terrific competitor in what he did and his expectation of others. He was a really powerful influence in keeping us directed and on-song, and we couldn't have made a better choice in terms of the impact."

Judge is survived by his wife Annette and three sons, Jason, Ben and Beau.

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