Scott Pendlebury reveals his greatest fear ahead of milestone match where he will become the most capped AFL player in history

Scott Pendlebury has appeared to be bulletproof on his way to a record-breaking 433rd AFL match against West Coast today, but the Collingwood star has revealed he does have one big fear.

The Magpies will celebrate Pendlebury breaking retired North Melbourne legend Brent Harvey’s all-time AFL/VFL games record in front of a massive crowd at the MCG on Saturday. 

And ahead of the milestone match, Pendlebury revealed that while he thrives in open space, it is completely different when he finds himself in enclosed spaces.  

‘I got stuck in an MRI machine years ago (in 2015) when I had a shoulder reco and they couldn’t get me out,’ Pendlebury told News Corp.

‘I just freaked out, and I have been claustrophobic ever since.

‘Last time I had a scan on my calf at the end of last year ‘Al’ [Pendlebury’s wife] had to come with me and I had to have the green whistle to calm me down.

‘It’s just a genuine fear thing. I try and avoid closed spaces at all costs.’

To reach this milestone, Pendlebury has been his own harshest critic.

And he credits his father Bruce who was a more than handy footy player himself for Sale Football Club and Latrobe Valley.  

‘I always just have my dad in my head when I kick for goal. He rings in my ears,’ Pendlebury said.

‘Don’t lean back. Stay over the ball’.

‘I could have 50 touches and play well, but miss a shot on goal and he will say ‘Yeah, you played well, but what happened on that shot? You leaned back’.

‘Dad is a great kick. He is a left-footer, too, and he still kicks it further than I can.’

As the hours count down until Pendlebury’s milestone, coach Craig McRae is determined to ensure the ‘energy’ buzzing around Collingwood in the build-up to his record-breaking appearance is put to good use. 

There is also business to attend to for the Pies (4-5-1), who are winless since Anzac Day and enter round 11 sitting outside the ‘wildcard’ spots. 

‘The best way that we can celebrate and honour Pendles is by playing well, so we’re dialling really deep into that,’ Collingwood coach McRae said.

‘We’re making sure that we’re in tune with what we need to manage against West Coast and their strengths.

‘We’ll put on a good show for our fans and celebrate Pendles the best way possible.’

McRae has repeatedly defended Collingwood’s management of Pendlebury in recent weeks, denying the West Coast fixture has been ‘hand-picked’ for an easy kill to celebrate the veteran’s record-breaking 433rd game.

The 38-year-old, who starred in the Anzac Day thrashing of Essendon, was rested for the draw with Hawthorn and narrow loss to Sydney in the last three weeks.

McRae said those games had given the Magpies belief they could compete at a high level as they seek to break back into the finals picture.

‘We’re performing really well at the moment in patches and not getting the result in a couple of close games,’ McRae said.

‘At the end of the day we’re here to win, and we’re judged on our wins.

‘We’ve got ourselves in a position where we think our game’s getting in better shape and growing week to week.

‘We’ve been playing arguably the best teams in the competition the last three or four weeks and showing that parts of our game stack up, but we won’t be taking West Coast lightly, that’s for sure.’

The Eagles (3-7) visit the MCG for the first time this season after ending a six-match losing streak with a morale-boosting home win over GWS last round.

‘Their pressure was enormous … so we’re going to make sure we’re ready and aware of that,’ McRae said.

Pendlebury’s milestone is expected to draw the largest-ever crowd for a Magpies-Eagles home-and-away clash, with about 90,000 fans expected.

‘I’m excited for what’s been put in front of us,’ McRae said.

‘I’ve been quite removed from the commercial side of things, clearly that’s not my job, but our worlds collide on Saturday.

‘There’s going to be a great celebration of our club, our history and our past.

‘We honour our jumper constantly, we talk about that as our cultural piece and we want to bring our fans along for the ride.

‘What a great opportunity to live out our culture.’

Collingwood defender Dan Houston (200 games) and Eagles young gun Harley Reid (50) will also celebrate personal milestones in Pendlebury’s shadow.

‘We want to make sure those things don’t get missed because they’re big achievements and they make us who [we] are,’ McRae said.