Steele Sidebottom wants you to enjoy his AFL milestone as much as he will on Thursday night.

While Collingwood’s focus is on greater ambitions in 2025 as the club sits in second on the ladder and is well-placed to claim a second flag in three seasons, Sidebottom will take some time for reflection this week as his decorated playing days reach their twilight.

The Collingwood dual-premiership hero notches game 350 of his storied career in the Magpies’ clash with Hawthorn this week, making the 34-year-old the 26th player in VFL/AFL history to reach the feat, and the second Pie to do so after teammate Scott Pendlebury.

Sidebottom, born at Tallygaroopna, is one of the Goulburn Valley’s greatest AFL success stories, and the Magpies veteran attributes his values as a footballer, and person, to those that shaped the sports-loving kid from the country.

“I love Tally, I couldn’t think of a better place to grow up,” Sidebottom said.

“It’s home.

“Sport’s always been a part of our family, over our back fence was the Tally footy oval ... we were always outside doing something.”

The Collingwood stalwart spent nearly a decade immersed in local country footy at Congupna, joining its junior pathway at eight years of age and remaining a red and white player until his final year before the draft, when Sidebottom won a thirds premiership with The Road in 2007.

While it’s been nearly two decades since he was drafted to the city to play in black and white stripes, Sidebottom remains tight-knit with Congupna club stalwarts and still seeks updates on the country footy scene, stating he keeps a close eye “on almost all the Shepp clubs”.

Although there are “bigger fish to fry” in the coming weeks with Collingwood’s premiership charge, Sidebottom is content with soaking up the attention of this round’s personal accolade, and he wants those who supported his journey to do the same when he crosses the MCG boundary line on Thursday night.

“I hope a lot of guys that have had an impact on my career, whether they were a team manager or a footy coach or volunteer, can get some enjoyment out of the weekend too,” Sidebottom said.

“It’s not just me getting there on my own, there’s a lot of people that have sacrificed some of their time and put time into me getting better.

“You talk about community, local clubs don’t run without those kinds of people, and even at our level (AFL) as well, it’s usually the people who are working behind the scenes that do the heavy lifting.

“I want everyone to enjoy it ... because the reality is I’m not going to celebrate my 350th again.”

Although long removed from the country footy scene, Sidebottom reflects it is something he still aches to be a part of again.

And his return might come sooner than you think.

Sidebottom has entered some sort of a second prime, averaging career-best figures across a range of key metrics, and is set to lock in a contract for 2026.

The esteemed Collingwood figure puts his longevity down to self-belief, blocking out external noise and a fortunate injury-free run, but repeating Pendlebury’s quadruple-century feat is not a narrowed focus on the midfielder’s radar.

“Well I’m definitely not thinking about 400, that’s for sure,” Sidebottom said with a laugh.

“But people think that once you get over 30 that your time is done.

“I feel like my age is almost an excuse, if I’m playing well then I’m called ‘experienced’, but as soon as you start dropping off, you’re ‘too old’.

“I think age is kind of irrelevant, if you’re good enough you’re good enough, whether you’re 17 or 35.

“Once I get to the stage I don’t think I can contribute to the footy club and, maybe I’m being a little bit of a burden on the place, then I’ll be happy to retire and get out of there, but at the moment I still feel like I’ve got something to give and it’s nice the club thinks the same thing as well.

“But I miss the whole country footy vibe and feel.

“It’s a tight community and something no doubt one day I’ll have some involvement in.”

Sidebottom’s brother Josh featured in his own huge 400-game milestone earlier this season for Tallygaroopna in Kyabram District League, but the pair’s age leaves thin odds Sidebottom will strap on the boots with his sibling post-AFL retirement.

“I hope so (that I can play local country footy again),” he said.

“The hope of playing with my brothers is very slim though.

“I wouldn’t give up the position I’m in to play with them, but it’s something that would’ve been unreal, to play a game of footy with all my brothers in the same team.

“Maybe it might just be a cricket game or something down the track.”

But, Sidebottom assured that a return to his Tallygaroopna or Congupna football roots are firmly in his plans when he calls time at Collingwood.

While it remains to be seen whether that appearance will be in 2027, 2028, or even beyond, when posed the question, the response was confident and clear.

“Yeah definitely, sounds great,” he said.

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Sunday, 25th June 2023

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