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Petero Civoniceva - Source: Getty Images
It's fitting Petero Civoniceva will join his longtime captain Darren Lockyer and representative front-row partner Steve Price in rugby league's elite 300 game team this weekend.
When the 36-year-old Fijian-born prop steps out in front of a packed Suncorp Stadium crowd on Friday night for his 300th NRL game, he'll officially become the 17th player, and just the third Queenslander since 1908, to achieve the magical milestone.
His journey began at ANZ Stadium in Sydney on April 26, 1998.
Along the way, he's played 45 Tests for Australia and 32 State of Origins for Queensland -- both records for a forward.
He'll play his 33rd and final Origin in next month's series decider, also at Suncorp Stadium, as he drops the curtain on a career in which he's done as much for rugby league off the field as he has on it.
As the 17th player to chalk up 300 games, Civoniceva completes a squad headed up by his former club, state and national skipper Lockyer who stands at the top of the list on 355 games.
He will be reunited in the front row with another warhorse Price (313 games), with whom he played so many Origins and Luke Priddis (315) who claimed premierships with Brisbane and Penrith.
Making up the 300-game team back-row is New Zealand legend Ruben Wiki (312), Parramatta's tireless Nathan Hindmarsh (320), the only player along with Civoniceva still going around today.
Canterbury's Terry Lamb, who held the record of 350 until it was broken last year by Lockyer, would be the lock.
The backline would be Lockyer at fullback, Andrew Ettingshausen (328) and the game's most prolific point-scorer Hazem El Masri (317) on the wings with Brad Fittler (336) and Steve Menzies (349) in the centres.
The halves would be Manly genius Cliff Lyons (332) at No.6 and Brett Kimmorley (307) at halfback.
Making up the bench would be Luke Ricketson (301), Jason Croker (318), Paul Langmack (315) and Geoff Gerard (320).
Given he has won seven premierships with two different clubs and is widely rated the best since Jack Gibson, the 300-game coach would have to be Wayne Bennett, the man who launched Civoniceva's career 15 years ago.
Here is a list of the players he joins:
355 Darren Lockyer (Brisbane).
350 Terry Lamb (Western Suburbs, Canterbury).
349 Steve Menzies (Manly, Northern Eagles).
336 Brad Fittler (Penrith, Sydney Roosters).
332 Cliff Lyons (North Sydney, Manly).
328 Andrew Ettingshausen (Cronulla).
320 Geoff Gerard (Parramatta, Manly, Penrith).
318 Jason Croker (Canberra).
317 Hazem El Masri (Canterbury).
315 Paul Langmack (Canterbury, Wests, Roosters); Luke Priddis (Canberra, Brisbane, Penrith, St George Illawarra).
313 Steve Price (Canterbury, Warriors).
312 Ruben Wiki (Canberra, Warriors).
307 Nathan Hindmarsh (Parramatta); Brett Kimmorley (Newcastle, Hunter Mariners, Melbourne, Northern Eagles, Cronulla, Canterbury).
301 Luke Ricketson (Roosters).