Among the toughest period of his football life, Michael Voss will post an extra-special career milestone on Saturday night.
The Queensland Team of the Century captain and Brisbane Lions triple premiership hero will become just the 25th person in AFL history to play and/or coach 500 games.
The monster milestone will come as Voss, takes the Blues into another tough game against St Kilda at Marvel Stadium.
If it had been one week later it would have been a real fairytale, with Carlton to play Brisbane at the Gabba next Friday night.
Voss will join former Brisbane teammates Chris Scott and Ross Lyon and former coaches Leigh Matthews and Robert Walls in this uber-elite group.
He will reach 500 career games with his 211th game as a coach after 289 games as a player.
Aged 50 years 299 days on Saturday, he will be the 19th youngest member of the 500 Club.
Oddly, Matthews was the youngest at 41 years 173 days in 1993, and Lyon, who hit 500 career games in Round 20 last year, was the oldest at 58 years 261 days.
Just outside the 500 Club is ex-Brisbane player turned Collingwood player and coach Nathan Buckley. His career games total sits at 498.
Kevin Sheedy, who played 251 games at Richmond and then coached Essendon 634 times and GWS 44 times, holds the all-time AFL games record at 929.
Mick Malthouse, a player at Richmond and St Kilda and coach at West Coast, Western Bulldogs, Carlton and Collingwood, is second at 892.
And third is Collingwood legend Jock McHale at 877. He played 164 games at the Magpies, was playing-coach 97 times, and coached a further 616 games.
The full list prior to Round 8 of this season is:-
929 – Kevin Sheedy
892 – Mick Malthouse
877 – Jock McHale
793 – Leigh Matthews
729 – David Parkin
719 – Ron Barassi
662 – Norm Smith
653 – Allan Jeans
636 – Rodney Eade
624 – Paul Roos
606 – Robert Walls
597 – John Worsfold
589 – Tom Hafey
583 – Alastair Clarkson
575 – Chris Scott & John Kennedy
562 – Damien Hardwick
550 – Perce Bentley
548 – Adam Simpson
533 – John Longmire
517 – Dick Reynolds
511 – Ross Lyon
510 – Phonse Kyne
499 – Michael Voss
