People may think all players hang on for as long as possible because the game provides such a great income, but there's much more to it and I don't believe it would be the biggest motivation for many players  wondering whether to play on or retire, if any at all.

To make it in the AFL, you need to be a competitor. To stick around at this level for a long period, you definitely need to be one. Competitors love a challenge, enjoy the battle and are somewhat addicted to living their life on the edge. As you get older, you start to embrace nerves and learn to take in everything around you more.

As much as it asks of your body, surviving for a long time in the AFL is a mind game as much as anything. The pre-seasons test your resolve. The meetings can become repetitive. And the pressure to perform is enormous – every football follower can find out how many kicks, marks and handballs a player has had in a game with a few clicks of their phone. There is nowhere to hide and the scrutiny on individuals has reached a point where it should come as no surprise that we are seeing more cases of depression and mental illness – at least publicly – than ever before.

Just because you might have achieved something in the game doesn't make you immune to the critics.  You could argue the spotlight grows the more you accomplish and the longer you last in the game. Everyone is looking for your flaws. Is this player going to be part of our next premiership? Has his best footy passed him? Should we be promoting youth? These are things supporters love to talk about, and questions list managers and players need to ask themselves.

But from what I can see, players and clubs are both realising that having a few old heads around the changerooms can have huge benefits, separately to the experience those players bring on match day. I look at a club like St Kilda, which seemed in for a long rebuild when Alan Richardson took over as coach a couple of years ago. At that point, not many people would have seen Nick Riewoldt, Leigh Montagna and Sam Fisher as being part of their next premiership tilt, but rather than fast-track their retirements, the club kept them around and watching them play this year, you can see why.

The fabric of a football club is important to the fans but they understand it has become a ruthless business. I have no doubt they would rather see the next opportunity for success come quicker than watching their old favourites run around for another year or two, but there's no reason clubs can't do both at the same time if they manage older players well. Clearly it's a balancing act to get the right mix of players in different age brackets so that the club can have sustained success, with players ready to step up and fill the roles when the time comes for older guys to finish.

Players have the best medical advice and treatment available. Training programs are designed on such an individual basis that players with any sort of physical ailment are able to find ways to keep fit and give old joints a rest. Now that we've moved away from the old "one-in, all-in" mentality of conditioning staff, players are lasting longer and getting a lot more out of their bodies.

Clubs have also gotten better at keeping players well informed about their plans. As a player, when you've been around for a long period you know when it's time to start playing a slightly less prominent role to assist the growth of the group. When you reach that point – and whether you realise it yourself or have it communicated to you by the coach – you don't necessarily lose any motivation to play well, it's just that there's a shift in what's important. Watching Nick Riewoldt play this year, you can just tell he's getting real enjoyment out of playing a different role up the ground, while also mentoring players such as Paddy McCartin, Josh Bruce and Tim Membrey.

A team's fortunes can turn around so quickly that you never lose sight of success even while changing your mindset on what the team needs of you, and Riewoldt is the perfect example. Imagine being one of the greatest centre half-forwards of all time and being asked to play a new role in your 16th year to help the development of teammates. He's been willing to do that, and what he's done on the field would only be a small part of it. Think about the influence he would be having on McCartin, Bruce, Membrey and others, talking about running patterns, setting the example with his training and passing on his experience, having seen what a club in the premiership hunt looks like when everyone is on the same page.

There's also the aura that someone like him has around the change rooms. The young players don't have to look far to find someone to aspire to be like.  I can remember being a young player at Geelong; I was constantly looking at the lockers to find out who had played 100, 200 and 300 games and I wanted to be just like them. Even though he was reaching the end of his career and probably couldn't do anything close to like he was previously capable of, I would watch Peter Riccardi and do my best to be like him, picking his brain constantly. Having a relationship like that so early in my career gave me a clear idea of what I wanted to achieve in my own career, and how I had to go about it.

I haven't noticed a big shift in how I pull up after games as I've gotten older. In saying that, my body did seem shot at 21. I believe your body becomes resilient over time, more accustomed to soreness from bumps and bruises. But there is no doubt your joints can only handle so much, and if you have had some major injuries there does come a tipping point. If you're not able to train as much as you need to, it can start a downward trend in terms of repeat efforts, speed and power. And when that falls away, it becomes really evident that a player's time is up. That's why it's so important to have a good relationship with the medical and fitness department, so they they know when to push you and when to lighten your load.

I've been really big on recovery for the past four or five years. I would rarely be seen swimming in the ocean in Victoria – it was just too cold, and I was always happy with the facilities at the club, but  in Sydney I often take my family to the beach, and do some extra recovery while I'm there. You don't need to walk around in the water wearing a hoody up here, you can actually dive straight in and swim around for as long as you want without counting how many minutes you've been in.

I can't say how big an effect it's having – to this point the season still feels like it's really just beginning – but there's no doubt it provides a good mental stimulant and has some sort of benefit, which I'm really enjoying. Either way, it's good to still be out on the park and watching so many guys I've competed against for a long time look like they're enjoying their footy just as much as I am.