One of the AFL’s best tales of perseverance will get some well earnt recognition on Thursday night as Jack Buckley plays his 50th AFL game in the club’s blockbuster ANZAC clash with the Lions in Canberra.
Drafted to the GIANTS as a Category B Rookie in 2017, Buckley toiled away at the club for almost three years before making his AFL debut in round 17,2020. Originally a forward and also trialled as a wingman, Buckley was eventually moved down back where he started to shine before a career-threatening ACL injury in 2021 forced him to spend more than 600 days on the sidelines.
Built with perseverance, Buckley battled his way back to the GIANTS line-up in 2023 where he played every game in a breakout season to establish himself as one of the AFL’s most reliable key defenders.
While admittedly not often the most celebrated milestone, Buckley is aware his journey to 50 games has been a bumpy one and acknowledges it means a little more than usual after taking nearly seven years to reach a mark many bring up in two or three.
“It’s an interesting one because I guess it happens pretty frequently, a lot of guys get to 50, so you’re not in rare air or anything,” he said.
“But I think it’s definitely a little bit different in terms of it’s taken me a while to get there. It’s my seventh year now.
“Personally, I must admit, it’s good to get to 50 games because when I first got here I didn’t think I would play one game, and it took a long time to get to 50 from there…I want to make sure the next 50 is a lot quicker than the first 50,” he laughed.
“It’s probably not how you think it’s going to go when you walk in the door, but to be honest when I walked through the door I was a long way off it, so I wasn’t thinking about getting to 50 games quickly, I was thinking about getting my first game out of the way.
“50 games isn’t a big deal but it’s certainly something I’m proud of to this point in my career,” the modest GIANT added.
After originally giving up the game as a teenager, Buckley returned to the field in his late teens which ultimately saw him later added to the GIANTS’ Rookie list. The courageous defender looks back on the decision to return to footy with great joy, admitting a career in the AFL was always his goal but one he never though he’d achieve- and one that despite the hiccups- he’ll never take for granted.
“It was always my dream to play AFL footy, but it always felt like a dream, it wasn’t actually a reality and it never felt attainable,” the 26-year-old said.
“I never felt like I was ever going to get there until about a month or two before I got here [the GIANTS] to be honest - it all happened so quickly.
“A lot of luck comes into an AFL career, and you’ve just got to deal with whatever good luck or bad luck comes your way.
“Sometimes you have bad losses or bad injuries, but then you think, well shit you’re still here mate, so you can’t complain too much. You’ve got to have a bit of perspective and I know I’m really lucky with where I am, so I certainly keep that perspective.”
An integral piece of one of the competition’s stingiest backlines in their record-breaking run to a preliminary final last year, Buckley said performing under the spotlight in September had been the standout achievement across his first 49 games.
“I always really wanted to play in finals and win a final and play on big stages and get that experience, so to be able to do that last year was a real highlight for me,” he said.
“To be able to play in those massive games, where it’s a different brand of footy and where the bright lights are on and you’ve really got to show up, that’s a real privilege.
“Playing in a grand final and winning a premiership is the ultimate goal and there’s plenty of work to do, but playing finals footy is definitely the highlight so far.”
The son of former North Melbourne chairman Ben Buckley, who played 74 games for the Kangaroos in the 80s and 90s, the star GIANT revealed that while game milestones don’t mean too much to him, there is one that he’s been eyeing off since his AFL career began.
“My first goal when I walked in was playing more game than my old man and he played 74, so I think the 75 is going to be bigger than my 50th and that would be the real milestone,” he laughed.
Buckley will get one step closer to his dad’s tally on Thursday when the GIANTS host the Lions at 7:30pm at Manuka Oval in a special ANZAC clash.
