BRODIE Kemp didn’t want to go into another pre-season without an AFL game under his belt.

Now, with a game to spare in the 2021 campaign, he’s officially Carlton player No.1224.

That in itself is a key achievement for the 20-year-old, who admits to having doubts when some rotten injury luck wouldn’t seem to go away.

By the time he arrived at Carlton, Kemp had come to terms with what he was in for after injuring his ACL four months prior to the November draft in 2019. A back injury in 2020 followed, before his first full match simulation session ended in a syndesmosis injury which once again put him on the sidelines.

It’s been a journey for the young defender, and despite the result on the weekend, ticking the debut box was “very rewarding” for the Echuca product.

“Spending two years on the sidelines was a big challenge to get through. To finally get the game and play AFL footy was a dream come true,” Kemp told Carlton Media.

“It was a massive relief. I started to doubt my body a bit [after the syndesmosis]. I was like ‘geez, it’s a lot of injuries back to back’.

“To get back into the VFL, play consistent footy there, play consistent games in a row and now to finally get to play AFL footy, it’s certainly something I’ll remember for a long time.”

His perseverance through his injury setbacks wasn’t lost on the man presenting Kemp’s jumper in front of his family on Zoom in the locker room on Saturday.

As two careers at Carlton began, another one came to an end, with departing veteran Marc Murphy handing the No.17 jumper to Kemp prior to the debutant’s first game.

And the former captain’s words on Kemp’s ability to keep fighting were ringing through the youngster’s ears when he ran up the Adelaide Oval race as a Carlton player for the first time.

“I said on the day that he’s one of the greatest to play the game for this club, so it was awesome to get presented the jumper by him,” he said.

“He just said that I’ve shown resilience and put in a lot of hard work to get the game. To hear him say that was something I didn’t throw away lightly and resonated with me quite a bit.

“It’ll definitely be in my memories for a long time.”

When news came through of Liam Jones’ injury last week, attention quickly turned to the prospect of a long-awaited Kemp debut, which ultimately became a reality.

However, while the spot opened up in Jones’ absence, a big reason for Kemp being ready to go was the impact of his fellow defender as well as Jacob Weitering.

“They’ve done a mountain of work with me,” he said.

“Sometimes it goes unnoticed, but I know that every conversation, every meeting and every training session I do, I’ll always look to them. They’re so good at what they do.

“‘Jonesy’ sat in my review [on Monday] when he’s injured, which just shows the calibre of his personality and how much he wants to help others and me.”

After being desperate to get the games column ticking over, attention quickly turned to the one remaining game of the 2021 season and what comes next.

Echoing the sentiments of fellow debutant Corey Durdin (“I was rapt for him”), Kemp believes the opportunity to run out before the year was out provides a perfect springboard for what’s to come.

In his own words, Kemp believes he can aim higher now with that previously elusive dream now realised.

“It’s really good. It’s nice to know what’s required at the level and going into this pre-season, I’ll know exactly what I have to doo and what level I need to get to,” he said.

“Rather than not debuting this year and trying to achieve that next season, I’ve got that now under the belt. What I’m aiming to achieve is going to be higher than just debuting, because now I’ve already done it.

“I’m looking forward to this pre-season, that’s for sure.”