HE WAS a Hawthorn supporter as a kid, he looks up to Tarkyn Lockyer, he plays father figure to two of Collingwood's rising stars, and he didn't become a defender until late in his teens.

Although quiet by nature and regularly unheralded as a player, Nick Maxwell has certainly had an interesting career.

He was the first rookie-listed player to be promoted under Mick Malthouse, and this weekend is set to emphasise the benefits of the rookie program when he runs out for his 50th league game.

"I'm pretty excited about it. It's a bit of a feather in the cap as not many people make it to that many games," he told collingwoodfc.com.au.

"I'm excited to make it to my first real number, and to my big first milestone.

"I look at it as on the way to 100 games, but it does mean a fair bit to get there, especially with coming off a rookie list.

"Once you start playing, you're happy just to play one game, and you think, ‘If I get another one, it will be good’. Once you get that taste, you just want to keep playing every week.”

Maxwell recalls the frustration that came with being called a Collingwood rookie for the better part of the first two years of his career, especially when watching his former junior teammates thrive at the top level.

"I've always thought I've just got one year at the club. My first year I was a rookie, and I didn't get a chance to play, but the second year I got promoted and I got a few games," he said.

"It took me an extra year to get to AFL level, and compared to all the other guys I played with at the Geelong Falcons like Luke Hodge, Jimmy Bartel, Gary Ablett, Matt Maguire and Brent Moloney, who were out there playing every week, it was hard.

"It was frustrating when some of the guys I'd played on and played well against got their chance and I didn't get mine. It does make you appreciate it a bit more when you do get a go at it.

"Now, I'm pretty happy with the way everything is going, and I'm looking at trying to push on to more games."

Maxwell grew up watching his Hawthorn heroes in Jason Dunstall and Anthony Condon, and never really considered himself a chance to develop into a reliable backman.

As a kid, Maxwell said he was undersized and therefore suited to a midfield role. But as he grew increasingly taller, he was pushed further down the field until he found his niche.

"Growing up, I wasn't a backman and I didn't watch anyone specific like that. I was more about watching the team. When I turned 17, I was told, ‘You can't play on ball anymore, you're going to centre half-back’.

"I like playing in defence now. I like the trust and the bonds between the backmen."

Those ‘trusts and bonds’ between himself and fellow defenders Simon Prestigiacomo, James Clement and Shane Wakelin are things Maxwell holds in high regard, and believes the foursome can just "look at each other and know what the other one is thinking".

With the ‘new’ generation of defenders slowly starting to evolve at Collingwood, Maxwell said he is intent on helping players like Nathan Brown realise the importance of a solid relationship between the side's backmen.

"There's definitely a gap in the age of our defenders. We have some really good players just waiting for their chance, and Presti and Jimmy and Wakes have been absolute stalwarts and don't miss too many games with injury," he said.

"So, there hasn't been a lot of opportunity for younger guys. We have Harry O'Brien, Alan Toovey, and Nathan Brown, who I think will be a 10-year-player at centre half-back.

"There are a few others in the mix who I think will be really good players for us, and play well in our backline."

Maxwell believes the age difference between the club's experienced pillars, himself, and the developing generation, has come as the result of players "not coming up as expected" in recent years.

But he is confident the club's defensive structure is in good hands, and is hoping his mentoring role with players like Brown will ensure the Magpies have a strong base to stand on as the years progress.

While he looks after Brown as far as playing the game is concerned, he has also adopted a father-figure role to two of the club's up-and-comers in Sean Rusling and rookie Sharrod Wellingham.

While Maxwell provides meals for the young duo, who have moved into the house he recently built, he says he draws the line at doing their washing.

"Myself and my girlfriend do all the cooking. They get looked after too well, I think," Maxwell laughed.

"They're always getting into me, saying I'm a bit old, even though I'm only 23."

Maxwell said Rusling is "going well" after enduring surgery on his injured shoulder, and is still hopeful of playing this season despite early reports suggesting his playing days are done for 2007.

"He's going ok. It was a bit tough for him at the start, because he's had so many injuries in the past couple of years," he said.

"He knows he's got the club's support and that he can go to them whenever he needs to. They've put together a program for him, so he doesn't just get sick of all the rehab things, and we should expect him back later in the year."