Jack Schilg 'the quiet achiever' plays his 100th game for Corowa-Rutherglen

Schilg plays game 100 against North Albury at John Foord Oval with the Roos firmly in contention to play finals for the first time in his career.

The 23-year-old has stayed loyal through the lean years and is one of the first names on coach Peter German's team sheet every week.

"It's been a great start to the season," Schilg said.

"We're definitely moving in the right direction and there's a different feel.

"Getting to 100 games is definitely an achievement.

"I didn't really think about it that much but it's always been an ambition of mine to get there."

Schilg's grandfather, Kevin Witherden, played a record 287 games for the Corowa Spiders and there's nowhere he'd rather be.

"I've been there my whole life so it's like a second home," Schilg said.

"It's just good playing with mates and enjoying my footy.

"A lot of my mates from Geelong have come back to play, guys who played junior footy at Corowa. Everyone's pretty local and we don't have that many out-of-towners so we're pretty tight-knit."

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Schilg's consistency across half-back makes him a coach's dream but German is determined to get even more out of his latest centurion.

"Jack can really run, left-footer, he's a nice kick and he's well-balanced so if there is an area I challenge him in, it's trying to run more from the back half to give us that rebounding-type defender," German said.

"He's aware of that and he continues to work on it.

"I think all coaches would love five or six rebounding defenders and that's where Jack can really take his game in his next 100 games."

It's a conversation which can continue throughout the week, with German a regular patron at Schilg's Doc Yarrum Cafe in Sanger Street.

"Jack takes $70-80 of mine every week with his coffee and Asian scrambled eggs," German said.

"He's part of the fabric, him and his family.

"They've been key contributors to our club for a long time now.

"Jack's come pretty much from Auskick all the way through at Corowa.

"We've got a few guys who have been around for a while and a lot of them haven't tasted a lot of success.

"Jack's part of that group that's been around, done some hard yards and now those guys, more than anyone, are starting to enjoy their footy because they can see there's some good young kids coming through and they're developing really well.

"It's given those guys some real impetus to enjoy their footy.

"Jack's a quiet achiever.

"There's nothing flamboyant or boisterous about him but you know what you're going to get every week.

"He gives you a real strong contest, plays his role to the best of his ability and that's what you build teams on."

Saturday's clash with North Albury also marks the delayed 20^th anniversary of the Roos' 2000 premiership, with Ben Black's documentary of that season to be shown to the returning players after the game.

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