LUKE Sherwood rang his father Les, who was holidaying in France, after Wanderers beat Southern Beaches in the 2014 grand final and declared he could "retire a happy man".
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On Saturday, Sherwood will notch his 223rd first grade game, moving to second on the Two Blues' all-time list, when Wanderers take on Maitland at Passmore Oval.
"It is an incredible achievement but he won't want us to make it about him," Wanderers coach Dan Beckett said. "It is about educating the young guys about what he has done. Every first grade game is tough and he has played 223."
Sherwood made his first-grade debut as a teenager against the Waratahs in 2005. He beat the same opposition in the grand final that season, and was captain of the 2009 and 2014 premiership sides.
He has previously attempted to "drop to the lower grades".
"I've tried to wind things back but it hasn't panned out that way," the 34-year-old father-of-two said. "I'm just happy to help out. If the coach thinks I have a role to play in first grade, I won't say no. Once the whistle blows, I do really enjoy being out there. The training and waking up Sunday is definitely getting harder each year."
Back playing fly-half, where he made his debut 15 years ago, Sherwood is in career-best form.
"He always puts the club first," Beckett said. "If he sees a need, he is there. That is how it evolved this year. He is the first at training and is ripping in. You couldn't not pick him. He has found his role and is playing better than I have ever seen. He is a link player now, he is tough and has great vision."
The late John "Fats" Halter holds the record for first-grade games at Wanderers with 286.
"This will be my last season," Sherwood said. "We have six players in the country colts side and another six in the NSW under-18s. There is some really good young talent coming through. This will be it for me year in the top grade and I'd like to make the most of it."
Second-placed Wanderers take on a Blacks outfit coming off a rugged 21-14 win over Lake Macquarie and boosted by the return of key backs Carl Manu and Pat Batey.
Manu scored at the death to snatch a 21-17 victory in their round-one encounter at Marcellin Park.
"Carl has had a bit of a freshen up," Maitland coach Matt Thomas said. "He is a class player and in these tight games is where you look for the class players to step up."
Thomas said Sherwood's milestone was "a wonder achievement" and rated the Two Blues "the team to beat".
"They are doing really well and believing in each other," he said. "We just have to get some consistency."
Elsewhere Saturday, Nelson Bay will be without Adam Edwards, Matt Affleck and Rhys Dombkins for the visit by University.
The Gropers are six points outside the top five and need to get on a winning run.
"We need to improve our starts and our execution," co-coach Ben Whaler said.
Merewether are at home to Southern Beaches and Lake Macquarie host Singleton.
