Somewhere amongst guitar lessons, learning Spanish and embarking on a graphic design course Ben Stratton has managed to squeeze in a pretty successful football career.

Saturday afternoon’s grand final re-match between the Hawks and Swans will be Stratton’s 100^th AFL game – a huge achievement for a guy who didn’t take football to seriously until his late teens.

With an artist for a mother and a father in the wine industry, Stratton was encouraged by his parents to explore a range of opportunities.

Growing up on a farm in the coastal town of Yallingup south of Perth, Stratton developed a love of the outdoors.

“We were never confined to a living room, we were always out there, me and my sister, riding motor bikes, helping out dad on the farm and surfing down at the beach”, Stratton said.

“It (playing footy) wasn’t a dream early on because I was playing a lot of other sports as well like surfing, baseball and softball.”

“It was only towards my East Perth days where a few clubs started talking to me and I thought I better give this a crack”, he said.

After five years in the system, Stratton has developed into one of the key members of the Hawks back six. His versatility, consistent output and ability to read the play makes him one of the Hawks most valued players.

When asked his upcoming milestone the laid-back, Stratton admitted it is a humbling achievement in an era of great success for the football club.  

“It’s nice to be able to contribute and be part of a bit of Hawthorn history and hopefully there’s a little more to come in the next 50 or 100 games as well,” he said.

“In 2011 when I did my knee, there was a stage there I didn’t really know how long it was going to keep me out for.”

“I was still confident that I had a lot of footy ahead of me and I was still pretty young. My body’s still pulling up pretty well so hopefully there is a bit to go in my career.’

While Stratton plays a key role on field, his off field duties have also become extremely important to him.

The club’s resident DJ, Stratton holds the keys to the Hawk’s ‘game day mix’.

“Most times I have my music on in the gym, whether the boys like it or not is a different story”.

“I’ve been doing the game day mix since 2010. I try putting in some older stuff and some new stuff to change it up now and then, but pleasing everyone is the hardest part.”

“I’ll probably pass the baton on now to one of the younger boys coming through to give them a go.”

In addition to handing over the DJ baton, the 26-year-old is also slowly starting to plan for life outside the walls of Waverley Park - starting a graphic design course in order to pursue a career in this field once football is over.

“I’m interested in graphic design and fashion side of things. I’ll give that a crack and see where it leads and maybe post-footy I’ll head down that path.

“Between that and guitar lessons and Spanish lessons on Tuesday nights, it’s keeping me pretty busy.”