Heath Chapman does not take games for granted.
Everything was falling into place - the young defender enjoyed a stellar final year of underage football, winning the best and fairest of the West Perth Colts side, running the fastest time in the 2km time trial at the WA draft combine and being drafted by Fremantle at pick number 14 in the 2020 National Draft.
The defender then found his way into the Dockers line-up and had played six of the first seven games of the 2021 season.
Then Chapman's dream run hit an unforeseeable hurdle when he landed awkwardly on his right shoulder in the first quarter of his debut Western Derby.
Ruled out for the rest of the 2021 season, Chapman went about understanding his body and getting it ready for whatever 2022 would throw at him.
Enter Round 1 against the Crows at the Adelaide Oval.
With seven seconds left, Chapman etched his name into the memory of every Dockers fan.
With a Ben Keays kick soaring deep into inside 50, Chapman was left one-out in the square with fellow youngster Nicholas Murray.
As he was wrestling with Murray for the position on the goal-line, Chapman forced his arm free, knowing if he rushed the ball the game would end in a draw; he spiked the Sherrin like a volleyball to a teammate, then followed up, received the one-two and booted the ball down the line.
This passage of play will go down as one of the greatest spoils in history, yet it all comes down to Chapman's focus on his craft.
On the weekend against North Melbourne, his game resembled that of a 250-game veteran - Chapman had a career-high 25 disposals at 92%, five marks, 12 intercepts possessions and five score involvements in Fremantle's 78-point victory.
Chapman's cleanliness with the ball results from his tireless work with Dockers runner Tendai Muzungu and assistant coach Matthew Boyd, who has helped the 20-year-old become a clean player below his knees.
When the heat is on, defenders are often forced to make split-second decisions and need to be clean below their knees to retain possession of the ball.
Speaking in the wake of learning that he had joined the likes of second-year stars Jake Bowey and Jai Newcombe in being nominated for Rising Star honours, Chapman claimed that his ability to get a summer of work under his belt was seeing dividends being paid.
“I was lucky enough to get a pretty free run at a long pre-season this year and could take a lot of confidence out of that,” Chapman told fremantlefc.com.au.
“I feel like each game that’s gone by I’ve been able to take a lot of learnings out and feel more comfortable out there as I string a few games together and keep learning along the way.”
This weekend, the second-placed Dockers face a hearty Gold Coast Suns outfit who surprised the competition with a 14-point win against Sydney at the SCG last Saturday - their third win in as many games in Sydney.
With a 7-1 record to start the first eight rounds, Chapman is excited about the next month of football - including Melbourne at the MCG (a ground Chapman has not played at) in Round 11 and the Brisbane Lions at home in round 12.
And wants to live in the moment.