You will struggle to find a more grateful 200-game player in the AFL than Nick Haynes.

Grateful to his father for pushing him when the desire wasn't there. Grateful that he finally pushed himself before it was too late. 

Grateful to the GIANTS for spotting something in him, that he couldn't yet see himself.

Without just one of those pivotal moments occurring, Haynes wouldn't be a Kevin Sheedy medallist at the GIANTS. 

He wouldn't have an All-Australian blazer and he wouldn't be running out for the 200th time in GIANTS colours against Sydney in Saturday night's derby at GIANTS Stadium.

"Reflecting on it all it's a pretty big thing for me personally. As an 18-year-old, I was playing local footy and I didn't think I was going to play one AFL game, let alone 200," Haynes told AFL.com.au. 

"I'm excited for it and it's something that I never thought would happen as a kid or even as an 18-year-old. It's something pretty special."

Haynes was a late bloomer, both on the footy field and off and if not for a critical intervention in his formative years from his dad Arthur, it's unlikely his footballing talents would have ever been realised.

"There were definitely a few crossroad moments in my career. I played in the under-18s Grand Final for Frankston Bombers and was spotted in that and invited down to the Dandenong Stingrays to play as a 19-year-old.

"I remember I had the best and fairest function for Frankston the night before my first training for the Stingrays and I got blind drunk and didn't get home till 2am.

"Dad woke me up in the morning and I said, 'I'm not going' but he kicked my butt and got me out there. 

"I still missed a few training sessions after that, by just not rocking up and then I had a really good think about things.

"I heard about one bloke regretting not giving it a go, and I thought, 'I don't want to have any regrets when I get to my 30s', so I'm thankful that my 19-year-old self pushed through. I'm glad that I made that decision to give it a crack."

The penny clearly dropped for Haynes at the opportune time. 

Had that occurred only a year or two later, like it has for so many before him, it may have been too late.

It's for that reason that he has an extra layer of appreciation for the privilege that comes with an AFL career and the major milestone he'll be reaching at GIANTS Stadium.

"Yeah, definitely. I had a year as an electrician on $7.50 an hour too, so it definitely made me appreciate AFL football," he said.

"I look back now and I'm just so thankful that I made that decision to fully commit myself. I could have easily been kicked out of the system."

It still took faith from an AFL club for that chance at the top level to materialise though and while it's likely someone else would have selected Haynes considering he was nabbed at pick No.7 in 2011, he didn't yet have the belief that the GIANTS had in him.

"I played Vic Country that year and I had chronic fatigue and didn't get a kick. I just didn't think I was going to get picked up but still got invited to the draft. Pick seven was a bit of a shock. They obviously saw something in me that I didn't see in myself," Haynes said.

"To be able to repay them in 200 games and to give them everything I have over the last 12 years hopefully justifies that. I'm very grateful for what they've done for me on the field, but also off the field, giving me that self-belief as a player and help growing me into a man away from home."

Between 2019 and 2021, Haynes was among the elite defenders in the AFL but struggled to reach his lofty heights last season amid injury and the team's struggles.

This season has seen the 31-year-old rediscover his best form but as the GIANTS' seven-game winning streak has materialised and the brilliant backline has been rejigged, Haynes has had to settle for a spot as the substitute in two of their past three wins.

Coach Adam Kingsley has guaranteed the milestone man will be in the starting 22 on Saturday night but Haynes is comfortable with the challenge he faces to nail down his spot in a surging side.

"As a team, it's really healthy. It's a great thing to have and especially for our backline. I'm just really proud seeing the growth of our young players," he said.

"I've seen their journey from the start, people like Jack Buckley who did his knee and struggled to even get back. I'm just super proud of him. Connor Idun, he's improving each game and he's a leader of our club at a young age.

"The best thing about them is their character and their humbleness to want to learn and get better. There are no egos in that backline group. As long as I can get a spot somewhere on the field, I'm more than happy and we're still winning so that's all I care about."

A lot of winning, in fact.

A club-record seven wins in a row to catapult into sixth spot at the start of round 21 against the expectations of many in Kingsley's first season. 

But certainly not the playing group.

"We sat down in pre-season and we asked the whole group, 'How far do you think we can go this year?' We didn't talk about a three- or four-year plan, or anything like that. We said this year 'let's give it a red hot crack' and everyone in the room said, 'Yep, let's do that'," he said.

"There wasn't any false hope or anything like that. We just said, 'Let's get to work and see what happens'. Football these days is all about team system, playing your role more than just having talent these days. We're improving and we've got high hopes for this team in the short term."

To keep the record winning run going against the GIANTS' fierce rivals would add another big chapter to what is fast becoming a special 2023 storyline for the club.

And that opportunity, on a significant night personally for Haynes, isn't lost on him.

"You couldn't script it or pick a better night for it. A Saturday night derby at home against the Swannies. It looks like good weather in Sydney, so hopefully we pack out GIANTS Stadium. That would be nice and it's going to be a cracker game, with both playing for finals," Haynes said.

"I've got a few stragglers from back home coming up, and obviously Mum and Dad and my sisters, they've been a big part of my journey. To have them up here help celebrate, it's going to be amazing and hopefully we can get that win and celebrate even more."