Former North Melbourne general manager Greg Miller
"I can't claim Friday night footy. I was just an administrator at North, happy to be involved. It was more Bob Ansett and the board who really got it up and going.

"In round one, 1985, there was great excitement with the expectation of a massive crowd. They closed the gates of the Northern Stand at the MCG and people pushed open the gate and I reckon another 10,000 came in that night ... the excitement and the movement of the footy, it was a really electrifying scene.

"I remember that year we had a lot of letters to the club complaining that we were taking games out of Arden Street to the MCG, and then we got another lot of letters from supporters saying, 'I can’t get my son to the football now, my kids won’t be able to go, what are you doing it for?’, and of course now we know that night football’s become an integral part of the game.

"You certainly don’t know just how big something’s going to become, but we saw that first night that the fans were hungry for it. Subsequent games showed that we as a club were creating a niche for ourselves for the office workers and people were coming to watch a game of football after work, and as it happened we started to become people’s second [favourite] team."

Port Adelaide coach Mark Williams
"I remember there was the big hype of going to the MCG that night and the anticipation of a big crowd. We weren't exactly sure what was going to happen. I know Bruce Abernethy has a fantastic shot of us going through the banner and obviously being captain you get to run through first and it was a pretty exciting night.

"I remember playing on the first Sunday game ever against Essendon and there was every chance there was going to be a strike because players only ever played on Saturday afternoons. No one really wanted to play on Friday nights either, but North put their hands up and in the end if they could have grabbed it for all-time they would have been the richest club going around." - Williams was Collingwood captain for the inaugural Friday night match against North Melbourne in round one, 1985.

Inaugural Crow Andrew Jarman
"For me it was an overwhelming experience going into the unknown as a young group in the AFL at the time. We used to get changed on the grandstand side of the ground in those days and I remember finishing up the pre-game address with Graham Cornes and walking out of change room one.

"We walked down the race and all I could smell were hot chips and vinegar. The place was packed and as we walked out of the tunnel to go out onto the ground we heard the roar. The smell went throughout the stadium and it's weird, but every time I smell hot chips now I think of that game. I got to play on my younger brother that night and he was taught a lesson. It was A. Jarman - three votes, and D. Jarman - get another kick." - Entering the AFL in round one, 1991 - on a Friday night at Football Park - the Crows beat eventual premier Hawthorn by 86 points.

Former Richmond coach Jeff Gieschen
"It was my last game as an AFL coach and we'd organised for the whole cheer squad [to come] into the rooms before the game. We'd packed in 300 people in the rooms unbeknownst to the players. Our boys came out of a pre-game meeting to see all these fans in the room and they started chanting, 'RICHMOND, RICHMOND'. It almost took the roof off. We were as pumped as possible and ran out on the ground.

"I noticed when we got out there was a bit of smoke around and a funny smell. Within a few minutes it escalated to quite a nasty situation, stuff was melting off the scoreboard and we didn't know what was happening. Next thing I know Wayne Jackson, who was the CEO of the AFL, came out on the ground and told me we had to take the boys off the ground. There was a massive letdown after such a big build-up. Thankfully it didn't have a huge impact because we had a dominating first quarter and ended up winning over a far superior side in Carlton." - Gieschen's recollection of the Friday night that the MCG scoreboard caught fire. He is now the AFL umpires manager.

Backflipping ex-Richmond and West Coast utility Peter Wilson
"I can tell you what possessed me - we were struggling to win games of football.

"I guess being a junior gymnast, I was about to do something called a round-off and I thought a backflip across the centre of the MCG would be something to remember my footy career by. But I forgot to really consider the ground conditions and when I did the round-off, I went to do the backflip it was a bit too slippery. I jumped in the air and it still made headlines. I think I'd been watching too much American football.

"Trust me, after three years with the Tigers I'm not too sure how many times I sang the song but I reckon it was only half a dozen ... that was a memorable night. We were scraping the bottom end, so it was worth celebrating.

"I played a lot of Friday night footy, especially at the WACA when I came over to West Coast. As a player I enjoyed Friday night footy more than any other day’s play. It gave a roof to a stadium and for some reason the atmosphere always on Friday night seemed to just be a little bit better than the Saturday games, and I was lucky enough to perform on Friday nights." - Wilson celebrated in unique style after Richmond’s surprise 17-point victory over reigning premier Carlton in round 12, 1988.

Former North Melbourne captain Adam Simpson
"It was good because the era I played in we won every week. It was a good chance to have a good win, enjoy the weekend back in the social days of the '90s, then turn up on Monday ready to go again. The memories I have of Friday night football are unbelievable.

"I wasn't part of the pioneering of it, but I was definitely part of the era where we played six or seven games a season. It was our day, so to speak, so it was great for the Kangaroos to be acknowledged for their part in that.

"The club has spared no expense this week in getting the legends back to the club and I'm sure the boys will put in a really good effort. Hopefully they'll get a great crowd tonight." - Simpson, now an assistant coach at Hawthorn, played 306 games with the Roos from 1995 to 2009.

North Melbourne coach Brad Scott
"Football's changed so much in 25 years. Friday night footy was terrifically innovative back then, but now we're playing a Friday night game under a roof at Etihad Stadium. A lot of things have changed.

"Night footy in the middle of winter [outside] is certainly different to night footy at Etihad Stadium. I think footy has never been in better shape. It's a good opportunity now to reflect on where we've been as a football industry and the great players who have played Friday night footy.

"I remember growing up watching the Kangaroos play on Friday night with some of the great players coming through. We'll have a lot of our Kangaroo legends at the game on Friday night and it will be a great celebration."

Carlton coach Brett Ratten
"I probably have more memories of the Kangaroos because they had the innovation and as a club they really jumped on it. They need to be congratulated on doing that because they helped kick off Friday night footy.

"When you look at it, most families sit down on Friday night and watch the game."