He’s set to become just the 74th VFL/AFL player to break the 300 game milestone, but Drew Petrie could easily have gone down a different sporting path.

Petrie’s parents, Trevor and Sue, remember his childhood fondly.

“Cricket was his favourite sport, and he played footy with his mates in the off-season,” father Trevor told The Ballarat Courier.

“Just like he is in footy, he was very dedicated, determined and disciplined.”

Playing for Ballarat-Redan as a junior cricketer, Petrie is said to have been a fierce competitor with bat and ball.

He even gained an invitation to a Victorian junior side’s training squad.

But football proved to be Petrie’s true calling. Called up to his brother Scott’s under-12’s team for a game as an underage player, he was launched on a trajectory that would continue for the next two decades.

“He dominated in that game,” Trevor said.

“And after that the footy club (Ballarat) were pretty keen to keep him around.”

With great pride in their son’s achievements, Petrie’s parents have been there every step of the way.

Trevor has been at more than 200 of Drew’s appearances in the royal blue and white, missing just one game in Victoria throughout a 16-year career.

But perhaps no trip down the highway from Ballarat holds more significance than the one the Petrie’s will take on Sunday.

For Sue, there's only one player on the ground that matters.

“I watch the game and Sue watches Drew,” Trevor chuckled.