Two-time Premiership Captain Mark Bickley has plenty of never-before-told stories, following a 13-year AFL career spanning across 272 games, and three years within the coaching ranks.

This year, Bicks will be lifting the lid on those stories with us, taking you inside the four walls at West Lakes, with an aim of giving an insight into football life.

Adelaide plays Hawthorn this Sunday and Bicks recalls the time he tagged Hawks great and Brownlow Medallist John Platten.

Growing up, I idolised John Platten.

He was a legendary South Australian player and then went to Melbourne and was just so good.

This was 1992 and we were coming up against Hawthorn at Waverley Park, Victoria, in Round 12.

John had already won a Brownlow at that stage, so he was a Brownlow Medallist, had won a Magarey Medal, and was someone who I looked up to.

I had been given a few tagging roles prior to this game and had gone OK, so I got given the role again, this time against Platten.

I was pretty early on in my AFL career, I was only 22, so it was a fairly big job.

I was excited for the challenge and I maybe had a bit of misplaced faith because I had been going OK.

The thing that staggered me was his workrate.

He just never stopped running, that was his game. The oval at Waverley was really heavy and it was hard work going through the mud.

But John just seemed to run on top of the ground where everyone else was running through the ground. He was just a great player.

He was clearly a bit too good for me and I lasted the first half, before getting switched to half-forward after half-time.

Luckily, I performed better in the second half.

You can’t rewind in life, so for me I thought about that old saying ‘it might not be your day, but it can be your moment’.

I just tried to do everything I could to make an impact and help the team out and that day I had a couple of moments in the last quarter and I hit the scoreboard.

Even though I didn’t have a great day, I had a couple of good moments in the last quarter.

The actual game was super close and we trailed for the entire day, with the Hawks taking a nine-point lead into the final change.

We knew we had to rally.

Although I kicked those two final-quarter goals it was Darel Hart who was the hero.

With just 1.46 left on the clock in the final quarter, Hart threw the footy onto his left foot inside-50 and it spiralled in for a goal to put us one point in front!

I remember there was a bit of contention that it could’ve been touched on the line but the goal umpire signalled it through.

Luckily, we held on for a one-point win! 

Platten finished the game with 31 disposals and four tackles.

We’ve now played 48 games against the Hawks across the journey and we’ve won 22.

Let’s hope we can make it 23 this weekend!

Go Crows!