MAX BAILEY completed his tortuous journey back from successive knee reconstructions on Saturday night with a 23-hit-out performance in his first AFL game since 2006.

The big ruckman was all smiles after his fifth career game and said he wasn't overawed by the situation.

"Thursday when I was told I was very excited, but I seemed to stay pretty calm. I think I was more nervous for my first game back in the VFL. It went pretty quick in the end, but it was just good to win," Bailey said.

"It was bit of a blur really. The first 10 minutes I was on I blew up pretty quickly, but I was pretty happy. I've got a few things to work on, but that's always the case."

Nervous fans could have been forgiven for watching Bailey's every move through their fingers, but the man himself didn't give his knee a moment's thought in the heat of battle.

"I've done a hell of a lot of work, as you could imagine, on that very thing, so I'm very comfortable with it all now. I don't think I'd be let out there if I wasn't," he said.

"I'm fine with it now. I think after my first [VFL] game I got over it pretty quick and it's been onwards and upwards from there."

The AFL landscape has changed markedly since Bailey's last game in round 21 of the 2006 season, both in terms of intensity and strategy, and Bailey has worked hard to ensure he wasn't a fish out of water when he finally returned to the big stage.  

"Sometimes I was [in the wrong position] and that's the way it goes, but that's been one thing I've been able to do pretty well. I haven't been able to do it physically, but my mental side is probably better now," he said.

"The pace was a bit quicker, that's why I blew up so quick in the first quarter, but I think I got used to it pretty quickly I reckon. I was reasonably happy with how it all went."

The scars on Bailey's knee are plain to see and the casual observer might ponder whether he bears more of the psychological variety after such a wretched run, but he's happy to dispel that notion.

"Even though it's been a tough two or three years I can't really complain because I've learned so much," he said.

"I've had a lot of really good support from the club and my family and friends. Yeah it's been tough, but I never thought of giving it away. The club has always looked after me really well."