Of the 12,383 men to have played at the highest level since 1897, just four have played 400 games of VFL/ AFL football.

Two of them reached the milestone this year.

As we celebrate the achievements of Dustin Fletcher and Brent Harvey, it begs the question: Are any of the current Collingwood players likely to join them at some stage?

We’ve investigated exactly what some of the contenders would need to do to join football’s milestone men.

Dane Swan
After 17 rounds in the 2015 season, Swanny has played 252 senior games.

If he plays every game between now and round 23 (note: no finals are included in these calculations), he will have played 258 games.

To reach 400 games, Swan would need to play all 22 home and away games in each season between 2016 and 2021, when he would be expected to finish the season on 390 games.

Then, he would need to play the opening ten rounds of the 2022 season before notching his 400th game… at the age of 38.

But if anyone can do the improbable… it’s our Swanny.


Steele Sidebottom
At the age of 24 years, and with 137 games to his name, Steele Sidebottom certainly shapes as a man to consider for future milestones.

Debuting aged 18 years and 130 days, Sidebottom had missed just 13 games prior to this season since his debut in round seven, 2009.

The only extended period he spent outside the senior side in the years since was the six week block he missed earlier in 2015, due to a broken thumb.

So, providing Sidebottom plays in all six of the remaining home and away games, he will be on 143 senior games after round 23.

It will leave him with a whopping 257 games to go before he could consider reaching his 400th game.

Sidebottom would need to play another 11 seasons, taking him through until 2026, when he would need to play the first 15 games of the season before reaching his 400th game… at the age of 35.

He’s an endurance athlete, so keeping up his fitness won’t be a problem. Just look after those thumbs, Steele!


Is Scott Pendlebury our best chance?
With 208 games to his name, Pendles is more than halfway there.

Imagine if he still has half a career left up his sleeve!

Again, presuming he plays all six of the remaining home and away games, Pendlebury will be on 214 games after round 23.

If he wasn’t to miss a beat between now and his potential 400th game, he would be on 398 games after the 2024 season, leaving the door ajar for his 400th appearance in round two of season 2025… At the age of 37.

To put all of this into context (keeping in mind that we are using our very foggy and slightly cracked crystal ball), Jett Buckley, the older of Nathan Buckley’s two sons, will turn 18 in 2024.

So if he were to enjoy his football and find his way onto an AFL list – Collingwood’s, for argument’s sake – he might just be lining up for his second senior game in Scott Pendlebury’s 400th…

… of course, we’re only dreaming.


*Note: None of the above permutations take into account any finals Collingwood might play (let’s hope there’s plenty of them).

Top 10: Games played for Collingwood
1. Tony Shaw (313)
2. Gordon Coventry (306)
3. Wayne Richardson (277)
4. Len Thompson (268)
5. Scott Burns (265)
6. Jock McHale (261)
7. Nathan Buckley (260)
8. Gavin Brown (254)
9. Harry Collier (253)
10. Dane Swan (252)