THEY say you never forget your first AFL game and, ahead of his 300th match, James Kelly vividly remembers his debut for all the wrong reasons.

Picked for Geelong to face the mighty Brisbane Lions at the Gabba in round six, 2002, Kelly recalls being a nervous wreck in the warm-up to the point where coach Mark Thompson needed to take him aside and calm the then 18-year-old down.

After starting on the bench, Kelly was eager to impress when he got onto the ground and lined up against Brownlow medallist Jason Akermanis. 

PODCAST: James Kelly joins the AFL Exchange team

"The ball came to me, I think it was the second quarter I went onto Akermanis, and I kicked the ball off the ground when I should've picked it up, I should've put my head over the ball," Kelly recalled to the AFL Exchange podcast.

"It went straight to (Justin) Leppitsch, who switched it straight to Akermanis (who) kicked the goal.

"You could see the yellow runner coming out. You can see him coming from a mile away. 

"He was running past players and you know he was coming for you (to say) 'off you come, son'.

"I finished the day, I had three possessions and three clangers, so not an ideal start."

It goes without saying that Kelly's career improved from there, with the tough midfielder going on to play in three premierships during Geelong's golden era between 2007-11.

Fittingly, the 33-year-old will notch game 300 against his former club when Essendon takes on the Cats this Saturday night at the MCG.