It was in the first quarter of the 1997 Preliminary Final that I felt a big snap in my knee.

I jumped into a pack, lost my bearings as I landed and my leg wasn’t ready for the impact.

The pain came pretty much straight away and I knew deep down that I’d done something pretty serious.

I got stretchered off and taken down into the rooms. 

Tony Modra clucthes his knee in pain during the 1997 Preliminary Final

The docs had a look at it and then I wanted to get back up to the ground to watch the boys.

I hobbled along on crutches and saw the rest of the game from the bench.

The Bulldogs were flying at that time and it looked like our season might be over anyway.

Fortunately for us, the momentum shifted in the second half. I think it was when Tony Liberatore celebrated thinking he’d kicked a goal, but it was a point.

The boys thought, ‘We’re still in this’, and that’s when they came back and got over the line.

At that stage, I didn’t know how bad my knee was and I was hanging onto hope I could play in the Grand Final.

The pain actually went away a bit. I was sort of hobbling around thinking I might be able to play on it, but I was kidding myself!

I got the bad news a couple of days later – I was out of the Grand Final.

It was the same knee I’d hurt a few years earlier.

In 1995, I tore three-quarters of my Anterior Cruciate Ligament at a game down in Geelong.

After seeing the MRI scan the docs said, ‘Well, you’ve got a quarter of the ligament left so you might as well keep playing!’ I wasn’t going to argue and got another couple of good years out of it.

It was unfortunate timing for that last quarter to tear when it did. It could’ve lasted just one more game and I would’ve been playing in a Grand Final and a premiership, but that’s the way it goes.

If there’s any upside to getting injured in a prelim it’s that you’ve only got a week to think about it.

Obviously, I was really disappointed. I’d played every game and contributed all year.

For that last game all I could do was try and contribute as much as I could off the field and let the boys do the work on-field, which they did.

I just wanted to be there for the boys the whole way. They were very inclusive – I still did pretty much everything the team did.

I went to training sessions and took part in the Grand Final Parade in Melbourne. I travelled to the game with my wife and stayed in the team hotel, and was in the changerooms before and after the game.

I had mixed emotions watching the Grand Final against St Kilda.

There’s some footage of me leaning up against the MCG fence wiping away a few tears late in the game.

I was really annoyed at myself because my knee went, which sounds silly because it was out of my control, but you just wanted someone to blame. At the same time, I was really happy for the boys.

Tony Modra celebrates with Andrew McLeod after the 1997 Grand Final

I imagine Brodie Smith and Mitch McGovern are feeling a similar way this week.

The circumstances now are actually a bit similar to 1997 because there were a few players who missed out on playing in the Grand Final that year, it wasn’t just me.

Mark Ricciuto, Peter Vardy and Matthew Liptak were also injured and watched from the stands that day.

‘Roo’ and I were at the Qualifying Final a few weeks ago when Brodie did his knee.

We both went down and saw Brodie in the changerooms before the game had finished.

I just said to him, 'it might not be as bad as you think’, but unfortunately it was.

It’s hard because you know what he’s going through, but everyone at the Club says he’s been really positive around the boys and Mitch too.

They can support the boys this week, and then use it as motivation for next year regardless of the result.

After we won the premiership in 1997, I just wanted to get myself right for the next year. The group of us who missed out were desperate to get back there and help the Club win another one.

The boys did win again in 1998 which was good. Unfortunately, it didn’t fall my way and I never got the opportunity to be part of a premiership.

But I’m very thankful to have been involved. In 1997, I was there the whole way. It was fantastic to be part of that and I’ll always remember it.

I’ll be at the MCG on Saturday, hoping to see it happen again but with my kids this time.

The kids are excited, the state of South Australia is alive and it’s just a great opportunity for the Club. I can’t wait.