There was a time in 1999 when Scott Lucas wondered if he would ever play AFL football again let alone reach the 100-game milestone. He badly broke his leg in a match against Adelaide at Football Park and the injury was taking time to get right. ""It was giving me problems and I suppose you do wonder about your career - it's not until you are injured that you ever really think about those things but it really made me think about my football,"" Lucas said. It may have been the doubts in Lucas' mind that made him attempt a comeback late that season.

""We were certain to play in the finals and that was obviously one reason I wanted to get back but I think I also wanted to just play footy again. I wanted to stop worring about the leg - to prove to myself that it was right and I was right,"" Lucas said. But the leg wasn't right and it was obvious to everyone who saw him running around in the reserves in late 1999 trying to force his way back into the senior side.

He was pulling up sore after games and after training and evenutally he conceded his season was over. ""Deep down I probably knew that I wasn't right and that I wasn't going to get back in,"" Lucas said. ""I was pretty low when that realisation hit me.""

But rather than dwelling on the negatives of 1999, Lucas set about getting the leg right for season 2000 and he did so with spectacular results. He booted 59 goals at centre half forward for the Bombers, stamped himself as the star everyone knew he was and walked away with a premiership medal around his neck.

""The contrast between the end of 1999 and end of 2000 was amazing. From wondering if the leg would ever be right again to playing in a premiership side - it was a big change,"" Lucas said.

However, Lucas hasn't sat back and and admired his premiership medal - far from it. His pre-season was the best he has ever put together and the coaching staff lauded him. ""He never missed a beat,"" Mark Harvey said. ""It was undoubtedly the best pre-season he had put together.""

But the rewards didn't come immediately. Lucas by his own admission struggled to get his hands on the football early this season but he never let the frustration show. ""We were winning so that made it easier but you want to contribute and at times I probably didn't do enough,"" Lucas said. ""It is very frustrating, particularly after the pre-season I had. People say the harder you work the luckier you get but I was starting to wonder.""

Lucas is probably being a touch harsh on himself. His big frame sees him do a lot of the bullocking work that goes largely unnoticed and he ran half a marathon in some of those matches to create space for opposition forwards - they were jobs that should not be under-estimated.

But last weekend against Richmond Lucas returned to his old form. He got his hands on the football early and you could almost see the confidence flood back. ""Yeah, last weekend was better but I didn't have much to beat,"" he said referring to his previous form. ""It helps to get your hands on the football early but I think that goes for any player.""

This weekend against Melbourne Lucas will reach another milestone when he plays his 100th AFL game. It's not a huge number of games but it is a significant achievement for the boy from Camperdown who knows all to well the ups and downs of AFL football. ""Injuries make you cherish every game so this will be special - I'm really looking forward to the day."" Lucas said.