While it will be hard to top the recent hype surrounding Brent Harvey’s 400th game, the number 29 is set to notch up another impressive milestone on Sunday.
When the Kangaroos take on the Demons this weekend, for Harvey, it will be his 100th game at the MCG.
With Etihad Stadium now the home ground of the Kangaroos, games at Australia’s largest stadium aren’t as frequent as they once were for the men in royal blue and white. Take the 2015 home and away season for example, and the Kangaroos will have only played on the hallowed turf twice, against Collingwood in Round 9 and Melbourne in Round 18.
North has only played 343 games at the venue in its long history. Compare that to this weekend’s opponents, Melbourne, who have played at the home of football a whopping 1,167 times.
While some of his younger teammates are yet to play on the hallowed turf, ‘Boomer’ knows it well, having made his debut at the MCG in 1996, winning a Premiership in front of 94,228 fans in 1999 and playing in a losing Grand Final side in 1998.
By way of comparison, Harvey has played 153 games at Etihad, 99 at the ‘G, 26 at Domain Stadium (Perth), 23 at Football Park (Adelaide) and 19 at StarTrack Oval (Canberra).
Fellow 400-gamer Kevin Bartlett tops the list of most games played at the MCG, playing 200 of his 403 matches at the iconic venue.
Other current AFL players who have reached the 100 game milestone include Dustin Fletcher (186 games), Dane Swan (160) and Travis Cloke (149).
Teammate Jarrad Waite is closest to Harvey’s MCG record at Arden St, having played 71 times at the venue, once with the Roos and the remainder with his former side, Carlton.
Boomer's MCG milestone
Veteran Brent Harvey is set to notch up another impressive milestone on Sunday at the MCG.