West Coast premiership Captain Shannon Hurn is still “feeling pretty good” as he prepares to become the first Eagle in the club’s history to play 300 games.
The dual All-Australian has barely missed a beat in his 16 years at the top level and will go down as one of the club’s all-time greats after captaining the side to a flag in 2018.
Hurn believes his durability and a little bit of luck have helped reach the 300 game milestone.
“I still feel pretty good, my body’s feeling pretty good,” Hurn told SEN's Bob and Andy.
“I think mentally you still need to be up for training and still enjoying that - trying to get the best out of yourself. So far I’m still really comfortable doing that.
“You need a little bit of luck, but I also think you need to get the odds in your favour as well.
“Sometimes your body frame can dictate that as well, I’ve always been a bit of a bigger bloke.
“I’ve never been lightning (quick) or anything like that, so it’s a bit like a Ferrari and a Tractor.
“I’m a bit more of a tractor and they tend to be a little more reliable. The Ferrari’s go beautifully but they take a little bit more maintenance work.”
Hurn handed the captaincy over to Luke Shuey at the end of the 2019 season, a move that he believes has helped refresh him over the past two seasons.
“Not doing the captaincy anymore has really helped free up some more mental space where you can recover and prepare yourself for games,” Hurn said.
“For me, it was probably more about just making sure - not in a selfish way, that you’re looking after yourself and your body.”
Since relinquishing the captaincy, Hurn has enjoyed the fact that he has a bit more time on his hands to dedicate to the playing group and the Eagles’ emerging youngsters.
“The thing I’ve really enjoyed and still love doing is I’ve been able to give more time to the playing group, especially the younger players,” Hurn said.
“Coaching is a bit of an interest so I’ve enjoyed being able to do that.”
Unfortunately, Hurn will trot out to play game 300 this Saturday in front of an empty MCG against Collingwood.