WHY do I wear number 42? Well, when I first arrived at the football club in 2003, I was handed the jumper and the locker number, and since then I’ve never had any intention of swapping it for a lower number.

Unlike other sports where your number represents the position you play on the field, Aussie Rules is different. Forty two is a high number in AFL. A lot of players like to choose a lower number as they believe it will be lighter and less of a load to carry during the game than a higher number (we are unusual specimens, we footballers).

Our locker room has our lockers lined up in numerical order, so I spend most of my time with players who have the high numbers. My locker mates are Shane Mumford (41) and Matthew O’Dwyer (43). They are both pretty clean so there are no issues there.

Just a few lockers away at number 37 we have Adam Goodes and he is a different story. He has so many pairs of boots he could almost cater for two teams. He leaves all his gear in front of our lockers so it’s always a struggle to fight through all his possessions.

In my locker I keep it pretty simple and just have what I need for training and for match days. I have about three pairs of boots (moulds and screw ins), boxing gloves for the boxing sessions we do, a couple of pairs of running shoes and a supply of protein powder.

I have a goal kicking competition against Jarred Moore every week. Once a week we partake in a goal kicking session and we always go up against each other. Inside my locker I have stuck a tally of the results so we can keep track of how we stand. Jarred is about four wins up on me at the moment so I will have to lift my game if I want to beat him.

When I was playing junior football I mainly wore number two as it was my favourite number. Now I at least have a two in there somewhere, so I’m quite happy with my 42.