When Geelong and Hawthorn battle it out for premiership glory this Saturday, Darren Wilson will be there. When Geelong demolished Port Adelaide last year, Darren Wilson was there. When West Coast defeated Sydney, and Sydney defeated West Coast, yep, you guessed it, Darren Wilson was there.

This Saturday AFL boundary umpire Darren Wilson brings up the remarkable achievement of umpiring in 11 grand finals. What is even more remarkable though, is the fact that it will be his eleventh consecutive grand final.

Wilson has officiated in 242 games at the highest level including 36 finals, the most of any boundary umpire in the history of the game. And after Saturday he will only be two games shy of the all time finals record for all umpires behind Jack Elder.

But it is his grand finals record which is truly amazing. Wilson will equal Lindsay Lancaster’s 44 year old record of eleven grand finals this Saturday but says the feeling of being appointed to a grand final is just as special as ever.

“I don’t look at it as being number eleven, I just look at it as doing a grand final and this year with the game being between Hawthorn and Geelong - the best two sides all year - it’s going to be a great game and I can’t wait to get out there,” said Wilson.

“(Being appointed to grand final) has become more rewarding. You get a weight of expectation when you’ve done a few in a row. Your friends and family say ‘you’ll get it again,’ but when you’ve been umpiring all year you know that’s not generally the case.

“You’ve got to set the bar even higher because you’ve become the hunted instead of the hunter.”

In his nine years as the AFL Umpires Manager, Jeff Gieschen says Wilson has been one of the standout umpires.

“In the time I’ve been involved I haven’t seen an umpire in any of the disciplines prepare as thoroughly as what Darren does.

“That’s reflected in his pre season fitness tests. He doesn’t just complete them, he smashes them. He consistently blows away the other umpires (in the fitness tests) with his running and he is able to transfer that running into his game to always make terrific position to be able to make the best calls.

“He is the most professional umpire I’ve seen. I was stunned one day when I went over to South Australia and walked into the umpiring offices where Darren worked at the time. He was having his morning tea which was some cereal with water on it.

“I thought there mustn’t have been any milk left but he said that’s how he eats it. He said he was on a low fat diet to keep his skin folds down and to make sure his body is in the best possible condition. That’s just one small example of what lengths he is prepared to go to in order to get the best out of himself. ”

Of his ten grand finals to date, Wilson still rates his first in 1998 as the most memorable alongside the two West Coast/Sydney games in 2005 and 2006.

“Just the feeling of running out and not knowing what to expect made my first one special. But the two West Coast/Sydney games were great too.

“Because the games were so close the pressure and the atmosphere was really intense which made them really enjoyable.”

The introduction of the four boundary umpire system in the finals has made life easier for the boundary umpires and Wilson says he enjoys the team aspect of umpiring with a fellow boundary umpire on the same side of the ground.

“I love the team aspect (of the four boundary umpire system). When you walk off the ground you’ve got someone to share the experience with and have a chat to.

“Quite often when there is only one boundary umpire on each side by themselves, you walk off and you know what you did but you don’t know what the guy on the other side has done.

“But by having someone on the same side as you, you just share a bond through the experiences you’ve both had throughout the game.”

Through all of his achievements in the game, Wilson’s most impressive aspect is his humility says Gieschen.

“He is very humble. For a guy that has achieved so much and been to eleven grand finals in a row, you would expect maybe a touch of arrogance or a touch of ‘look how good I am’.

“But unless you knew he’d achieved what he has you would never know. He carries himself with tremendous humility, he’s a real team player, he’s a member of the leadership group and he has got the respect of everybody because he goes about his business in an extremely professional way.”

As for what’s next, Wilson isn’t looking too far ahead.

“I just want to run well this week, make sure I do the job I’ve been selected to do and after that I’ll take some time off. I’ve got a new baby son Archer so my wife and I will enjoy some time relaxing and then I’ll pretty much start a new campaign to go around again.

“I’ll keep going for as long as the body can because you’re a long time out of the game.”

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