ASK MOST footballers when they want to play and there is an overwhelming preference for Saturday afternoon.

I consider myself a traditionalist and still love the idea of the big Saturday afternoon blockbuster, mainly because that is when the greatest game of them all is played.

But we can't all run out on a Saturday afternoon, so when is the next best time?

For me, it's Friday night.

There are so many great aspects to Friday night footy.

It's the first game of the round, it's the only game that day and it often has the largest audience – at the venue and on the TV.

It's not just the players who like Friday night games either. The clubs do too.

More people watching means more revenue for the home side and greater exposure for sponsors of both teams.

This season Hawthorn has three Friday night games. We have already played West Coast and last night it was Geelong.

The excitement continues into next week when we take on Collingwood at the 'G.

Both clubs pull big crowds, with around 90,000 expected again. They are huge games and all the boys get pretty excited about running out there on the biggest stage that isn't in September.

From a social and family perspective, playing on a Friday night really pays off on a Saturday.

It starts slowly, with the boys expected at the club in the morning for our recovery session.

You usually get very little sleep after a game, with the adrenaline still pumping through your body from the contest.

It's a tired and sore playing group that gathers at the club for a session that includes a medical check, bike, pool, stretch, ice bath and steam room.

From there we head straight to our Auskick clinics. The players are sent to all parts of the state, from Hawthorn to Healesville to Warburton, to help out with grassroots footy.

This week the Box Hill Hawks, our VFL affiliate, have the bye so from lunchtime onwards the rest of the weekend is ours.

All the things that are usually so hard to fit in can all of a sudden seem simple, like visiting my sister and playing with her children, having dinner with Lyndall's family or visiting a church we are thinking of getting married in.

Once the cobwebs are out, you can really savour your Saturday. You don't have to worry about playing and you can even enjoy a night out at a restaurant or at someone's place in front of the TV.

Lyndall's favourite indulgence as a result of the Friday night game is the Sunday morning sleep-in.

It happens less than five times from late March to late September, so it's something to look forward to.

If it's a win we have, then the weekend will be a great one with many laughs and good times.

When we lose, like we did to the Cats last night, the activities may not differ too much.

But I can assure you, the attitude and mood does.

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