CARLTON wingman Heath Scotland might be entering his 13th AFL season but the 30-year-old is showing no signs of slowing down.

On Thursday night, Scotland will play his 200th AFL game, a milestone he never thought he would achieve.

He made his debut for Collingwood in 1999 and played 53 games over five seasons but just weeks after the devastating Grand Final loss in 2003, he made the difficult decision to ask for a trade.

The Pies obliged and a deal was done with Carlton, and since then Scotland hasn't looked back, going on to become the Blues' number one possession-winner in a talented midfield.

You always wish and hope for [a 200 game career as a kid]," Scotland told afl.com.au.

"It'd be a great personal achievement for me, I suppose, but hopefully we can start it off with a win against the Tigers like we did last year.

"I'll be looking forward to it and hopefully it'll be a big night for us."

The oldest player on the list, Scotland credits the Blues' young side as helping to reinvigorate himself and said they drive him to continually push the limit.

"It's a great environment down at Carlton at the moment and it's keeping me young," Scotland said.

"Everyone tells you as you get older [that] you're going to feel more tired and slower but I feel strong, fit, fast.

"The eagerness of the young group really spurs you on and we've got nice fights for spots at the moment.

"The competition's fierce and I'm loving been a part of it. The young blokes are challenging me and I'm hopefully challenging them as well."

Scotland returned to his best last year after struggling to find form in 2009 and has declared this pre-season as one of his best.

Four operations at the end of season 2008, including surgery on both his hips, restricted Scotland's pre-season preparation leading into 2009 and as a result, his performances on the field suffered.

Last season the 30-year-old was one of seven Blues to play every single game and he admitted at his age, the importance of a pre-season could not be underestimated.

"I had a really big pre-season going into the start of last year and didn't miss any sessions," Scotland said.

"I was fit and able and the body felt good going into the season so I think that I just underestimated the importance of a pre-season [in 2009].

"I was able to get a strong one in last year and so far this year, so hopefully my form can transfer from last season to this season and I can have a solid year."

Heath Scotland is a $386,400 defender/midfielder in the Toyota AFL Dream Team competition