North Melbourne youngster Alan Obst will certainly never forget his AFL debut but unfortunately for all the wrong reasons.
Obst was promoted off the rookie list to make his senior debut against West Coast at Carrara last Saturday night, just two days before his 21st birthday and could hardly believe his luck.
But instead his debut turned into a nightmare as he suffered a punctured lung and broken ribs just minutes into his first game - forcing him to spend his 21st birthday in hospital before being forced to make the long trip back to Melbourne by road due to his internal injuries.
Obst, who arrived back in Melbourne on Wednesday morning after a 17 hour non-stop drive home alongside the club's welfare manager Mick Kennedy, will be sidelined for a month but has at least been able to keep his sense of humour over his unusual first taste of life in the AFL.
"It is a good story to tell the kids one day," he said of his less than ideal debut.
"It certainly wasn't a dream start, I was so excited about my debut but just a couple of minutes in I got a knee to the back of the ribs and I was pretty sore."
Obst played out the first term but the pain increased before he was rushed to hospital where his internal injuries were revealed.
"I just felt like I was winded and was waiting for it to go away and it didn't unfortunately," he said.
"It (making his AFL debut) was a dream come true and it was the ideal 21st birthday present but then I turned 21 on Monday and I was in hospital for my birthday, which wasn't too good."
But the Kangaroos' cheered the big South Australian up by flying his housemate and teammate Nathan Grima to the Gold Coast to keep him company as he recovered.
Now Obst is just hoping he gets another chance to show what he is capable of later in the season.
"I will come back through the VFL and hopefully I will get another chance sometime," he said.
"It was such a rollercoaster ride, I got a game then I got injured and I didn’t know what to think."
"I was thinking that maybe (AFL) footy isn't for me but I am feeling good now and I should be okay (to play again) in a couple of weeks."