Dean Rioli has overcome a number of obstacles in his five years at Essendon to play his 50th game this weekend. The 24-year-old was elevated from the rookie list at the end of 1998, has overcome nagging injuries, has soldiered on after the disappointment of missing the 2000 grand final side, and in recent times has got through personal problems to focus on his AFL career.

Assistant coach Robert Shaw said Rioli's commitment and passion for the game has been a key ingredient in him achieving the 50 game milestone. ""I just think it is a wonderful football story. He moved from his hometown on the Tiwi Islands, to Darwin, to Perth and then to Essendon. He fought his way off the rookie list onto the senior list and now he is playing his 50th game. He is half-way to 100, so if we get a 100 games out of Dean Rioli - what a story!” Shaw said.

Rioli has only played 10 games this season - after playing the first few is the VFL side and missing three due to suspension. However, he is starting to play his best footy for the season and demonstrated why he is renowned for his silky smooth skills. Last weekend against Richmond, he played across half-back and was easily the Bombers best player, finishing with 28 possessions. ""I am hoping to stay there (half-back) for the rest of the year - the game is in front of me and I can set play up and move the ball forward, which is more my style of play,"" Rioli said.

""That was one of his best games on the weekend against Richmond - that was a really strong team game that played a huge role in us falling over the line. There is no way we have seen the best of Dean Rioli yet - he has just touched the surface of his abilities. He is half-way to 100 games and half-way to reaching his full potential!"" Shaw said.

Rioli is aware he and teammates will have to make a big improvement on last week's performance against Richmond if they are to beat premiership favourite Brisbane. ""We were happy that we won against Richmond, but we weren't happy with the way we played. We are looking to turn our form around this week - at least we can take some confidence out of the fact we got the four points. I got a bit of the football, which was good.""

""The Brisbane mid-field has been unstoppable this year – Simon Black, Michael Voss, Jason Akermanis, Des Headland – just to name a few. Everyone seems to want to criticise our mid-field but I am confident it can win enough of the ball to give us a chance of winning the game. There is plenty of quality in there. We have to be confident in our game plan and I think that is the only way we can approach this game. Self-belief will go a long way towards turning our form around,"" Rioli said.