He’s already achieved pretty much everything throughout his decorated 15-year career, but superstar Lions midfielder Simon Black is set to make even more history when he runs out for his 300th AFL match this Saturday night against Geelong at the Gabba.

Black will become the FIRST player in VFL/AFL history to achieve arguably the game’s four greatest honours - having won a Brownlow Medal, Norm Smith Medal, played in a Premiership and now reaching 300 games.

No player throughout the game’s 116-year existence has previously reached all four pinnacles of success…until now.

The feat further proves how difficult it is to maintain an outstanding level of performance over a long period of time.

A handful of the game’s absolute greats have come close to joining Black in achieving the ‘Big Four’, however at least one of the honours has managed to elude them.

Take James Hird and Greg Williams for example. Both achieved almost everything throughout their long and successful careers, yet fell 47 and 50 games short respectively of the 300-game milestone.

Then there are the likes of Andrew McLeod, Kevin Bartlett and Simon Madden who are probably unlucky to be missing only a Brownlow Medal from their trophy cabinet.

Whichever way you look at it, Simon Black is in a league of his own.

No Lions fan in their wildest dreams could have ever predicted that the seemingly ‘slow’ and skinny teenager that arrived at the Club with Pick No.31 in the 1997 National Draft would be in this position 15 years later.

But the Queensland-born East Fremantle product made an immediate impact with the Lions, winning the Club’s Best First Year player in his debut season.

That proved the first of countless individual honours Black would humbly accept over the course of his stellar career - headlined by a Brownlow Medal, Norm Smith Medal, three Club Best & Fairest awards and multiple selections in the All Australian team. A full (and extensive) list of Black’s Club and AFL achievements has been listed out below.

“No doubt those Premierships were the highlight of my career,” Black told 4BC radio on Friday.

“When you’re playing a team sport and work together to reach the absolute pinnacle - they’re the things you cherish the most.”

He is now set to become just the 65th player in VFL/AFL history to reach the 300-game mark.

The accolade is a credit not only to ongoing elite level of on-field performance, but also his ability to remain incredibly resilient throughout the journey. In fact, Black has missed just 10 senior matches since the beginning of the 2001 season.

Although he still seems as fresh as ever, Black admitted to feeling a little older as he nears the end of his career.

“I do feel old - particularly when I’m probably about 10 years older than our next oldest midfielder,” he said.

SIMON BLACK’S CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
Lions Best First Year Player 1998
AFL Rising Star Nomination 1999
3rd AFL Rising Star Award 1999
Lions Rookie of the Year 1999
Lions Attitude Barometer Award 1999, 2002, 2003
Lions Premiership Player 2001, 2002, 2003
Lions Club Champion 2001, 2002, 2006
AFL All Australian 2001, 2002, 2004
International Rules Series 2001
Brownlow Medal 2002
Norm Smith Medal 2003
Lions Club Champion Runner-Up 2003, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011
3rd Lions Club Champion 2004
Lions Best Midfielder 2006, 2007, 2008
Lions Team of the Decade Member 2006
Lions Co-Captain 2007-2008
Lions Members Player of the Year 2007, 2011
Brownlow Medal Runner-Up 2007, 2008
Lions Life Member 2007
Lions Players Player of the Year 2009, 2010, 2011