Geelong’s most colourful player has never been one to take the easy road. Instead, starting from a young buck, Steve Johnson has always tested his limits and taken risks that have become an inherent feature in his game.  

"Before I played league footy, when I went down to the local footy ground, I wouldn't go and stand 30 metres out from goal, directly in front," Johnson told Fairfax media.

"I'd be betting my mates for a can of Coke from the boundary."

Johnson is aware that when he first came on board in Round 6, 2002, that many followers of the game believed he was a show pony who dabbled in dangerous waters.

However, Johnson’s dramatized movements on the field are something that comes naturally to the veteran. They’re not put on to entertain the masses but to support his teammates through the battle by playing the game in a way that’s most comfortable to him.     

"Possibly early in my career I was judged as a player that liked to be seen to be doing the fancy things," Johnson said.

"I think they were just the natural things that came to me on the footy field. But every player would say that as you get older it doesn't matter who kicks the nice goals or who gets the accolades, you're more driven by team success. That's what makes a footy club a happy place to be around."

Having been on the brink of the boot at the end of 2006/07 after a series of irresponsible events, Johnson is aware of how incredibly lucky he is to have continued his career as a one-club-player with a team he loves.

"I’ve always loved playing footy at Geelong. It was never my ambition to move clubs. It was unfortunate that I was faced with that situation, but fortunate that it worked out for the best,” Johnson explained.

“It made me a better player and a better person. I'm sure when I've finished my career I'll be pretty proud to be able to say that I played with some of the greatest players of our time.”

Johnson’s behaviour was not the only concern during those early years at the club.

"Early in my career I had a lot of operations in the off-seasons,” Johnson admitted.

"My ankles always were an issue, my knees were an issue."

In 2012, former teammate Cameron Mooney confessed to News Limited on how dubious the club was about Johnson’s AFL career.

"There were times when we would watch him run and we thought, 'This guy cannot get any movement in his ankle whatsoever'. We honestly thought that there is no way he is going to see out another couple of years. He looked done, it was that bad,” Mooney said.

Another player that knows how to excite the fans with his exceptional understanding of the game is former Cat Gary Ablett Junior. Johnson concedes that he would have loved to have had more years playing beside such a star.  

"When Gary was around the ball, he would draw two or three players to him," Johnson said.

"You just had to get close enough and he'd send you off into a bit of space. There's no doubt it would have been nice to play with him for another four or five years."

Although Johnson is no longer a part of Ablett’s success he still shares it with him.

"It's unbelievable the player he's turned into and the captain he's been able to become as well. I never would have thought, from the player I saw in his first four or five years at Geelong, that he would be someone that could direct a team and carry them on his shoulders and be the great example that he is."

Despite missing Ablett’s presence on the field, Johnson is pleased to have been given the opportunity to fill his spot in the midfield.

"It does become a little bit boring, playing the same position for 10 years," Johnson said.

"I always wanted to play in the midfield. I was always in 'Bomber's' [then coach Mark Thompson's] office trying to get a run through there."

As well as Ablett, Collingwood Captain Scott Pendlebury is another player that Johnson enjoys to watch when he’s not on the track himself.

"I love the way he goes about it. I love watching the decisions he makes with the ball, his workrate, the way he knows where the ball is going, the way he wills himself to get to the next contest, and will himself into that contest, and do the right thing at the right time,” Johnson said.

Overall Johnson admires the game and its players, past present and future. He will always be involved in the game as it’s a passion that he cannot get enough of.  

"I love watching footy. A lot of guys, when they leave the footy club, like to get away from footy, clear their heads. I love footy so much I'm happy to sit down and watch whoever's playing. I don't mind if it's 15th versus 16th on the ladder. There's always something you can learn."