HE GOT me.

The way I described it was it felt like a dream, a dream that I didn’t want to happen. In that moment, the emotion of it, you start reflecting on the journey.

Doc and I both got here in the same year, and we’ve been through a lot together. A lot of good times, some really tough times. I still have clear memories of chatting to him throughout his cancer journey, which was so tough seeing a good mate go through that. When he started talking about ‘Loz’, how she went above and beyond to help him, it speaks to how special footy clubs are and what they’re all about — people.

On Tuesday night, my mind was thinking a lot about the journey. We’ve been through so much together. It’s why we’re so close and why we have a lot of respect for each other. It did make me think that I was every part of 30, when sometimes in footy, you think you’re still 22 or 23 in your mind.

You always know footy is going to come to an end at some point… but with guys like Doc, you never feel like that day will come. This was the realisation: that we won’t get that opportunity of everything we’ve been working towards, that one day we’d be holding the cup up together.

But I’m still so grateful of all the memories we’ve shared together.

Early days, l saw just how driven he was. The earliest memory was in my second week, when we were in America and we found out that he lost his old man. I couldn’t have even imagined what he was going through.

In those first few years, I saw a guy that was very determined, a lot of self-belief, stubborn - all in the pursuit of knowing what he could get out of himself.

I remember him being a gun at half-back: in 2016 and 2017 especially, when he was on the way to becoming the premier half-back in the game.

I also saw the leadership start to come through, and that was when we really started to get close. At the end of 2017, we knew we were the ones that were going to take the Club forward. From the joint captaincy at the end of 2018, we became each other’s sounding board.

What’s he taught me? Everyone sees the resilience, the warrior, never giving up. The stubbornness, the self-belief that when you set your mind to something, you can do amazing things. That if you really want something, if you set your mind on something, if you’re obsessive and relentless after it, then you can do amazing things.

The moment which showed that for me was after his cancer battle.

I was looking at photos the other night… the one of him walking out on the ground, fully bald, he would’ve lost 10 kilos post-chemo. And then he plays Round 1, plays every game that year and has one of the best seasons of his life in 2022.

It’s not so much that he taught me about those lessons, but he really did solidify it to me.

Where everyone sees the footy player, I see the person. Someone who is very loyal to his friends and family, someone that has a great perspective on life and what’s important to him given everything he has gone through. He has spoken a lot about his purpose. He’s gone from playing for his old man to now bringing joy and inspiring others that are going through tough times.

He’s got the most out of himself, and that’s pretty special.

He knows he gave everything to the place. He knows he gave everything to get the most out of himself, for his old man and his family. He epitomises the mindset of never giving up. The most important thing we do is we bring joy to other people, and with what Doc does for Peter Mac and things like the Good Friday game, you realise in those moments that you can bring a lot of joy to a lot of people. In the way you play, in the way you show up and the way you keep fighting.

He leaves not only this club, but the game with the respect and admiration of everyone. Any supporter of any club, whether you’ve had tough times or haven’t had tough times, you look at Doc and say he’s inspired them in some way.

That’s pretty cool to say.

I’ve known for a little bit that this time was going to be coming: that moment last week against Melbourne summed him up. He dug in, he put his body on the line when the game was on the line and stood up in a big moment.

It definitely went through my mind then that you never know when you can soak in those final moments together. I’d love for him to have one more moment, have one more win and to celebrate in the right way.

It’s special that his last game comes in Weiters’ 200th. Weiters has been an amazing leader, his growth in that space has been huge… Doc has been a big part of that.

I’m glad Doc is retiring, only because I would hate to carry Weiters off. He’s a big man - I don’t know how anyone is going to carry him off. We might need a forklift or cherry picker for the big fella…

In all seriousness, it’s going to be good to play one last game with Doc.

If I look back on my footy journey, the coolest thing I have ever been a part of - without intentionally thinking that would happen - was the ‘Doing it for Doc’ campaign. What it taught me about footy, about footy clubs and life in general is the power of community.

I’m looking forward to the game. Having one last crack for him, digging in with him to get the win for him and Weiters.