THE BIGGEST week in footy is upon us and I’d love nothing more than to be a part of it.

More than a few times this week I’ve thought back to this time last year when I was preparing for my first grand final.

I admit I was a bit nervous. As a kid it’s a dream to play in a premiership and while you do your best to keep everything normal, it’s hard not to appreciate how special the week is.

There were heaps of people at every training session and the excitement of going through the grand final parade was great. Every day was full-on.

You always hear the warnings about not playing the game too much in your head because by the time you get out on the ground you’re exhausted.

To be honest, I didn’t really over think the game and that is probably because we had so much on that week.

I remember Stuey Dew telling us after the preliminary final to relax and focus on the things we had to do and not be overwhelmed by the experience.

My first experience of an AFL grand final was in 2000 when I watched Essendon beat Melbourne. I’d played in the TAC Cup with the Geelong Falcons that morning and I remember hearing the sound of the supporters. Having 100,000 people there creating a deafening roar was unbelievable.

I followed the same routine as I did all year. I got up, had breakfast and watched The Simpsons. We were very conscious of keeping everything as normal as possible.

My son Cooper was about eight weeks old at that point and any parent would know that’s not a great age for getting a lot of shut-eye. But my partner Lauren was fantastic with him; all through the finals series she did a lot to make sure I had plenty of sleep and a good preparation.

The only thing that is a little bit different is you do your warm-up a little bit earlier than usual because they’ve got all the music acts on. We had a bit of extra time in the rooms but the boys seemed pretty calm.

The start of the preliminary final against St Kilda was pretty intense. It was hectic in the first 10 minutes of the grand final but I thought both teams settled pretty well.

It was a ripping day weather-wise. I think the conditions in last year’s grand final were about as close to perfect as you can get.

For all the memories about the lead-up to the game, those special moments with all my teammates straight after the siren, there is one thing that stands out.

I will never ever forget Dewey’s five-minute purple patch in the third quarter. I still get goosebumps when I watch that bit of play. That is what footy is all about.

So good luck to the Saints and Cats. After having a taste of it last year I’m envious of you boys and will do everything I can to be in your position again this time next year.

The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.