It's taken several seasons and plenty of doubts, but Sydney's Dean Towers will finally play his 50th AFL game and faces one of his tallest orders.
Versatile Towers, 27, will chalk up the milestone in Sunday's opening round game against West Coast at Optus Stadium.
Sydney coach John Longmire said occasional ruckman Towers could expect to go head-to-head at some stage with the 12cm taller Nic Naitanui, who is back after missing all of last season with a knee injury.
"It's a great challenge and to go against some of the best in the comp will be a good story when I'm finished," Towers told AAP.
In a Swans side full of established stars and emerging youngsters, Towers is an unheralded player who has shown great persistence.
Drafted in 2012, Towers didn't make his first senior appearance until 2014 and was in and out of the side until playing Sydney's last 17 matches of their 2017 campaign.
"It's been a rollercoaster ride, you'll be playing one one week and you'll be dropped for the next and think 'how am I going to play? I'm no good," Towers said.
"There's heaps of doubts, but at the same time you get a lot of confidence from playing well.
"It's awesome to get to 50, from where I started, getting drafted as a mature-age player, not breaking in straight away.
"In the first few years just trying to show improvement so I could get another contract."
Longmire praised Towers for his 'fantastic athleticism' which allows him to play several roles, and also his resilience.
"He's kept improving every year," Longmire said.
As for competing against Naitanui and the other AFL ruck titans, Towers said "I've got to try and get my timing right so I'can be at the highest point..
"Hopefully I can get an advantage on the ground, where I can be a bit quicker than them and get them running.
"You need to be able to play more than one spot for most people and definitely for me, it's a good challenge jumping in the ruck and it gets me around the ball and it gets me playing more instinct footy."
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