BEN MCEVOY has used more than his fair share of Elastoplast across the past 15 years in the AFL, so it is only fitting tape has been a theme this week ahead of the Hawthorn captain's 250th game on Saturday.

Every player on the list at Waverley Park taped their heads before a meeting at Waverley Park on Thursday, after the communications department slyly lured McEvoy away from the group for a pretend media commitment. 

Then McEvoy's sister-in-law sent him a message saying: the real heroes are the 250 rolls of Elastoplast that have gone around your head.

Elastoplast or no Elastoplast, McEvoy will become the 275th player in VFL/AFL history to play 250 games at the highest level when the Hawks travel to Launceston to face Gold Coast at the University of Tasmania Stadium on Saturday. 

"I'm still pinching myself a little bit. It's an enormous privilege to be able to play 250 AFL games. Not too many people get to do it," McEvoy said on Friday. 

"We've seen some crazy milestones lately with Joel Selwood and Scott Pendlebury playing 350 games, which is just beyond comprehension for me. I'm really pleased and proud. Glad I get to take a moment to reflect with my family and thank all the people that have helped me so far."

McEvoy started 2022 with 244 games next to his name and was appointed captain for the second straight year before he broke his neck at training at the end of March, which threatened to end his career.

"I had to consider that maybe I might not be able to (play again), but once I had an understanding of the injury and the likely recovery I was pretty determined to get back," he said.

The 33-year-old made an inspirational return against Adelaide in round 17 and has played the past month, but he is out of contract at the end of this season and yet to make a decision on his future. 

Both McEvoy and the club wanted to see how he would recover from such a serious injury before making a call on what 2023 will look like for the veteran. 

"(I've) thought about it lots, but I'm sure you can appreciate the situation I've been in with a severe injury like that. It was very much park that, get back to playing and then I had this milestone coming up," he said.

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"It's a very holistic decision for me. When you get to this age there is two sides of it: How does it look for me? How does it look for the club? 

"I've got a family with young kids and I've never been a fan of living in Melbourne. There was always that pull to go back to the country. It's also how the body is feeling. I'm not young anymore but I have had a bit of a freshen up this year. There's lots of factors that go into. We'll work it out in the next couple of weeks."

McEvoy started his career in red, white and black after being selected with pick No.9 in the 2007 NAB AFL Draft before he was surprisingly traded to Hawthorn at the end of 2013 to help accelerate the Saints' rebuild.

The trade cost Hawthorn pick No.18 – St Kilda used the pick on Luke Dunstan – and Shane Savage, but helped secure a key plank in the 2014 and 2015 premierships, amid the famous three-peat under Alastair Clarkson.

"I've always felt incredibly lucky. That trade can be hard. There are so many factors with guys wanting to go home or just needing a fresh start or sometimes clubs move you on," he said.

"I felt really lucky that mine happened really quick. It wasn't my doing. I had the reigning premiers saying come play with us. I got to come here and win a couple of premierships and the enormous privilege of becoming captain. It's gone really well for me. I've always considered myself very, very lucky."

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While Hawthorn has been rewarded many times over for grabbing McEvoy from Seaford almost a decade ago, it is not only the coaches, players and administration that have reaped the benefits of having the Dederang product at the football club.

The fans have always loved McEvoy and the feeling has been mutual. It was only last month that the skipper attended the funeral of Hawthorn’s oldest member after building a friendship with the 102-year-old at the club. It’s a small thing, but a big thing that sums up McEvoy's contribution.

Regardless of whether McEvoy plays on next year or calls time on his decorated career ahead of round 23, one lasting image of 'Big Boy' will be half a roll of Elastoplast taped around his head in the middle of battle.

"I went through a period where I was actually pre-taping every week because when I was playing as the only ruckman and I was missing big chunks of games if I got split up having to be stitched up in game," he said.

"I was pre-taping there for a while like a rugby front rower. It has certainly become a little bit iconic where my footballing is concerned."

It certainly has. And when it is all over, McEvoy, his wife Nicki and their young family will quickly swap Melbourne for the farm, where they have already laid the foundations for the next stage of life.