In 99 matches for the Central Coast Mariners, Josh Nisbet has ticked off a long list of achievements.
His debut year came with Usain Bolt in the system; he's played against Hulk and Oscar; and won the A-League in June this year.
He's done all that at 160cm – making him the smallest player in the competition.
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Short in stature, Nisbet has proven attitude beats any attribute after coaches at junior levels wrote him off.
"It was definitely something I had to overcome, it was mainly a pre-concept inside their heads of what I was going to be like but I was able to prove them wrong," he told Wide World of Sports.
"It never bothered me too much, I just played the game I liked and had a laugh with my friends but my parents weren't too fond of it."
Nisbet's size has always been a factor, being a small kid during his junior years.
At 14 he went to Spain where clubs were interested but one wanted to check his growth potential and suggested growth hormones.
Doctors in Australia didn't agree, stating he'd simply be a late developer.
However, when Nisbet was trialling in England he fractured his right hip. That injury would play a role in potentially explaining why the midfielder is lacking in size.
Upon returning home, he discovered he had a tumour in his right hip called Langerhans cell histiocytosis, a very rare disorder which eats away at the bone and makes it hollow.
Fast forward to 2018, and Nisbet was ready to make his professional debut for the Mariners in the FFA Cup.
It was a cold August night in Adelaide.
The now 24-year-old remembers it fondly. He had a shocker.
"I remember my debut in the FFA Cup wasn't good, I got hooked at half-time against Adelaide, I was pretty stinking," he recounted.
"I think the main issue from my very first appearance was just more confidence and taking it with both hands and understanding the moment and getting a sense of maturity even though it was only one appearance.
"Just getting chucked in to start, you are prepared, but you don't really know what you're preparing for until you're in the environment."
But months later he secured his A League debut. An occasion he thought wouldn't happen.
"On the flip side, I came on at half-time against Newcastle away and did really well," he said.
"I remember thinking after the Adelaide game maybe I didn't take my chance and that could be my only time but fortunately I was given another chance and I took it."
All this came during the same season Bolt graced Australia's shores and trialled with the Mariners.
An iconic photo emerged of Bolt and Nisbet stepping onto the field together as substitutes in a pre-season friendly. The height difference was stark.
To go with that, Nisbet has also previously played against football legends Hulk and Oscar in a trial against Shanghai SIPG. Two decent claims at 24.
"I started when the team wasn't doing too well, we had Bolt coming in trialing, we had a fair few professional teams come out here one being Shanghai which had Hulk and Oscar, it started off as quite a whirlwind and in the back end it's gone really good," he said.
"You don't ever expect to be training with the fastest man alive, it was quite a shock but it was good to see such an incredible athlete up close."
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To make Nisbet's achievements even more remarkable, the youngster was still working at Woolworths when debuting for the club.
However, after securing his first game for the Mariners, his time with fresh fruit and vegetables was over.
"I think I had one more shift after that and that was it I think. I hung up the fresh food people apron," he laughed.
Now he will approach his 100th match for the Mariners.
Having faced setbacks all through his life, the achievement is a testament to the attitude of an athlete ready for any obstacle he faces.
The man that encouraged him to join the Mariners was now Brisbane Roar youth technical director Ben Cahn.
A man that's seen the highs and lows of Nisbet since he was 10 and knew there was a special talent in front of him as soon as he saw him.
"I was coaching at a small private academy on the Sunshine Coast, he was probably about nine or 10 at the time and he just had an unbelievable love for the game, a desire to be the best and improve," he told WWOS.
"And he just had a way with the ball that was so rare and so refreshing to see and despite his diminutive stature he was just physically so good, and able to just glide and so strong and resilient. It was just a genuine pleasure to watch him play in those years."
Cahn, a former youth league coach at the Central Coast, believes the size factor has "shaped who he is and his whole journey" after witnessing the rejections over time.
"It's one of those things that have really shaped who he is and shaped his whole journey … he had to find other solutions and normal ones to try and protect the ball and come out of situations in possessions and do all the things that are needed to be an effective footballer," he said.
"The fact he was smaller than other players really shaped who he is as a player and the fact he had to go through that journey where every time we turned up to a game, the other parents would point and look. Other players, coaches would be very aware of a really small player playing on our team but I think that's so admirable how he took it all on.
"He never showed any anger or frustration or resentment, he was so level headed, calm with an underlying resilience and toughness that not very young players have."
Now with 100 matches to his name, Nisbet isn't anywhere close to finished.
"I just want to keep playing for ages, it's obviously something you dream about as a kid," he explained.
"To be able to play professional sport, and not just to be able to play one time (is a great achievement) … I'm just excited to keep playing and not stop."
Having been an integral part of the Mariners 2022/23 championship winning side, Cahn believes there's even more to come from his protégé.
"The irony is I still don't think he's shown his best, I still think there are levels to come from him that people haven't seen and I think that the next phase of his career has to be around really maximising his potential now," he said.
"He's done the hard part, he's overcome all the obstacles to get to where he is and I really want to see him go on and flourish now and show exactly what he's capable of and bring even more joy to people who watch him."
Central Coast will play Melbourne Victory on Sunday, December 3 at 3pm (AEDT).
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