Dual Crows premiership player Andrew McLeod will lace up the boots for the final time on Saturday night in a NTFL Premier League clash at TIO Stadium.

McLeod, 38, recently returned to his original club in Darwin to help the Buffaloes to a 28-point win over the Southern Districts Crocodiles in last weekend’s Round Six clash at Norbuilt Oval.

The two-time Norm Smith Medallist was named third-best for the visitors in his first NTFL outing in almost 20 years. It was also Darwin’s first win of the NTFL Premier League season, which kicked off in early October.

McLeod said this weekend’s clash with the Waratahs would be a fitting way to close out his playing days.

“It looks like it will be my last game of footy and I want to dedicate it to my mum Marie and all the people, friends and family, who helped me through my career,’ he said.

“Coming back home to play for the Buffaloes again makes me feel like I’ve gone full circle with my footy, that’s certainly how it felt when I ran out against Southern Districts on Saturday.

‘’Sure, it’s been a long journey and I’ve been lucky to play with and against all the champions of the game, but I feel like I’ve come home at last and I want to finish it that way.’’

McLeod moved to South Australia in 1994 to pursue a football career and made his AFL debut with the Crows in 1995 after Fremantle traded out the quiet youngster.

McLeod’s career quickly blossomed in Adelaide, where he holds the Club’s all-time games record, racking up two premierships, two Norm Smith Medals, three Club Champion awards and five All Australian nods among a long list of accolades.

But McLeod, who said he suffered from serious cramp during the half-time break of last week’s game, almost missed the opening bounce of his comeback clash.

The Australian Football Hall of Famer said he was confused when he pulled in to an empty ground on game day.

“I wondered where everyone was and why no one had come to see me play,’’ he laughed.

“But when I rang my dad to see what was going on he said you d-head, you’re at the wrong ground.

‘’So I didn’t have time to be nervous, which as it turned out was a good thing because I got straight into it and loved chasing the footy around again.”

This week’s clash with Waratah will cap off a whirlwind fortnight up north for McLeod, who was also inducted into the AFLNT Hall of Fame on Sunday, before he returns to Adelaide next week.