ON SATURDAY Shaun Burgoyne will become just the 36^th player in VFL/AFL history to play 100 games at two clubs – a feat he says required a lot of hard work and sacrifice.

Burgoyne has had a distinguished 256-game career to date, 157 games of which were played with Port Adelaide.

But he now too has become a favourite son at Hawthorn for his classy skills, resilience, leadership and outstanding on-field performance.

None of what he has achieved at Hawthorn or in his career for that matter though, be it his two premierships – one with Port Adelaide, one with Hawthorn – or his All-Australian selection, would have occurred without the hard work he was willing to put in and the sacrifices he was willing to make.

“If you’re not willing to put in the hard work or the time, then there’s no point in sticking around,” Burgoyne told hawthornfc.com.au ahead of his 100^th game for the Hawks.

“You see the guys who do have good careers, they’re usually the ones who have worked the hardest and are the most professional.”

Burgoyne began his career in 2002 and joined Hawthorn via a trade at the end of 2009. He arrived at Waverley Park though, with a knee injury that required surgery and already some wondered whether he’d make any impact in brown and gold.

Some thought, assumed his best footy was behind him.

But someone who never thought that, not even for one second was the man himself.

“I was always confident in myself and in my body,” Burgoyne said.

“I obviously came over when I had the knee injury but I signed a three-year deal, so I was very confident I could play those and perform at a good level.

“Then every year after that was going to be a bonus.”

Burgoyne wore a helmet in his first game for Hawthorn after suffering a broken jaw in the VFL.

Burgoyne is now into his fifth season with Hawthorn and has missed just 12 games in that time.

He missed seven at the start of the 2010 season due to the knee surgery with which he arrived at Hawthorn and a broken jaw suffered while making his comeback from that through the VFL.

He also missed two games with suspension last year.

Outside that, he has missed just three additional games.

He has been a durable, consistent performer for Hawthorn.

“I’ve had my fair share of injuries but they’ve predominantly been in the off-season, so I haven’t missed too many games,” he said.

“I’ve been able to forge a career, which is something I never really was sure about in terms of how long I’d play.”

The match winner: Burgoyne becomes an instant hero as he kicks the Hawks into the 2013 Grand Final.

Burgoyne joins a long list of Hawthorn great to enjoy an illustrious time at Hawthorn, including Robert ‘Dipper’ DiPierdomenico and Shane Crawford.

For what he has done at Hawthorn, winning a premiership and being a genuine match winner when it has counted most, Burgoyne should be proud of what he has achieved in brown and gold.

“To play 100 games for Hawthorn, it’s going to be an exciting day,” he said.

“I get my name on the locker – the names before me like ‘Dipper’ and ‘Crawf’ and these guys who have performed outstandingly well in the number nine guernsey, to have my name underneath theirs is something I’m going to be very proud of.

"(But) once you finish, that’s when you look back and celebrate what you’ve achieved.”

And Burgoyne is hoping to achieve more than just one premiership and 100 games with the Hawks, having signed a new contract to play on in 2015.