The man they call 'Knocker' capped off his milestone game for the Bulldogs by kicking the final conversion of Saturday's second grade match against the Forbes Platypi at Ashwood Park, taking the hosts to a 35-10 victory in front of a joyous crowd.

The graceful toe poke was the latest of many highlights for Norris over a playing career that began with colts premiership glory in the late 90s.

Norris said when he was asked to step up to the kicking tee on Saturday he was hit with a surprising wave of nervous energy.

"It was quite odd and nerve wreaking all at once," he laughed.

"All I was thinking was just like 'Make sure it goes towards the goal' because I'm definitely not a kicker. When it went over I was definitely relieved and happy.

"I have kicked a couple of times before but those other ones were a lot wobblier. The one on the weekend felt like it was meant to be."

Norris achieved a significant milestone early last season when he played his 371st match for the club, making him the all-time appearances leader for the Bulldogs.

Now that he's reached another century milestone he's gone on to create even more great memories with the Bulldogs, and those reflections are a mix of on and off-field experiences.

"I've had a few people ask me what the highlights on the field are but it's not so much the highlights on the field that you remember the most," he said.

"You do have a lot of them, and there's usually one or two good moments a game to look back on, but it's the little things when you're part of a club that you remember, whether it's the spectators who come along and wear the funny things come finals time or the water boys who are there every week.

"When you look at those things that's what I feel I'll miss a lot when I hang the boots up. I sometimes think 'When is a good time to hang the boots up?' but I'm very non-commital when it comes to that."

Norris fondly remembers his back-to-back 1998 and 1999 junior premierships. He's gone on to enjoy an excellent second grade career, with further premiership success, while chipping in to assist the first grade side whenever needed.

The latest chapters of Norris' story, and that of the Bulldogs, was one of some uncertainty during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

But during the challenges that presented Norris was reminded of what makes the Bathurst club so good to be around.

"Over the last couple of years with COVID we've had to develop a bit more of a squad mentality. Sport in general has found it hard to rebuild, especially in sports that require travel, and it can be tough getting people to commit," he said.

"In saying that, it's also been a cool switch to see that everyone in the club is focused on this way of playing and training together."

Saturday's victory over Forbes continues what's been a brilliant 2022 season for Norris and the second grade team.

With a record of eight wins and just a single loss from their nine matches the Bulldogs have run out to a nine point advantage at the top of the table.

Norris said it was a great experience to play against Forbes' Andrew Hubbard, who brought up his 400th club game with the Platypi last season.

"It was a really great game and it was hard fought. It didn't go all our way but we stayed a lot more discipline than what we have been in the past, and we switched on defensively, which was pleasing. It turned into a really memorable game," he said.

"There's also a player from Forbes who is in the 400 club as well and we had a bit of a laugh. He's unbelievable. He's got 300-odd first grade games to his name as well. That was really enjoyable."

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can access our trusted content: