IT ALMOST seems appropriate that Sean Dempster’s milestone game is overshadowed by bigger milestones from bigger name players.

Dempster is one of three Saints celebrating milestones this week – his 150^th AFL game coming at the same time as the 250^th games of Nick Riewoldt and Nick Dal Santo.

Two of the highest profile players on St Kilda’s list, Riewoldt and Dal Santo will no doubt be the centre of attention when the Saints run out on to the field on Saturday to take on Melbourne.

[ RELATED: Dal Santo timeline  Riewoldt timeline]

As a result, Dempster’s 150^th is almost an afterthought – which he laughingly points out  has become a trend in his milestone games.

“It does seem appropriate. My 50^th game (for the Sydney Swans) was also Adam Goodes’ 200^th. The same day Mick O’Loughlin broke the games record for the Swans and it was Spida Everitt’s 300^th AFL game,” Dempster told saints.com.au.

“Even though 50 is not big, I kind of got shadowed on that one too so it’s ironic that it happens with my 150^th. To be honest, I wouldn’t have it any other way. I would rather fly under the radar and it is going to be something special I get to share with my family but I don’t necessarily need the hoo ha that comes along with a milestone.”

While he could happily do without the fanfare, the 29-year-old admits he does feel a sense of achievement at reaching the 150-game point in his career.

“When I first got drafted to the Sydney Swans, their life membership is 150 games so from being drafted all I wanted was to get to 150 games,” he said.

“I’ve seen a lot of blokes along the way in my five years there get to that milestone and get life membership. I know that doesn’t give me life membership at St Kilda but it is something along the way that I would love to get to. It’s only a number of games but as a young player it is something I always wanted to achieve.”

[ RELATED: From fringe to All-Australian ]

Dempster played the first 54 games for the Swans after he was taken as a father-son selection in 2002. He had a long-time link to the red and white, after his father Graham had played 64 games for the club in the 1970s.

Towards the end of 2007 Dempster had signed a two-year contract to stay at the Swans. With the football season over, he did as most AFL players do and headed on an overseas holiday.

It was while relaxing on a beach in Fiji that a fax came through telling him he was being pursued by St Kilda, which at the time was being coached by former Sydney Swans assistant coach Ross Lyon.

The resulting deal saw Dempster and teammate Adam Schneider leave the Swans to start a new life in a new city at a new football club.

“It kind of happened so quick when I spoke to Ross on the phone. He outlayed the possibilities and opportunities on the phone to me if I did come to the club,” he said.

“I spoke to him, then I spoke to my family and it was in a way kind of an easy move, just to see the opportunity I would have down here to further my football career and come back home to be closer to the family.”

The move was unexpected at the time, at least for Dempster who had played in an AFL premiership in just his 22^nd game at AFL level. He played in another Grand Final 12 months later and had no real desire to leave the Swans.

“It was a difficult decision in some aspects. You do forge a lot of friendships over the five-year period,” he said.

Grand Finals became a regular part of Dempster’s career, having played in five of them in his first 98 AFL games.

While he has fond memories of the 2005 premiership, he admits he was only a bit-part player in that game and driven by the desire to play a bigger role in another premiership for his second club.

“That was something I’ll always remember but I was only 20 games into my career and I didn’t actually feel like I was that big a part of the premiership. That is something that keeps me going these days – getting to another premiership opportunity but being able to say I really contributed to something special. One day, hopefully.”