Swan Districts veteran Tony Notte is set to break WAFL legend Bill Walker’s games record for the club this Saturday.

Notte, a triple fairest and best winner at the Swans, equalled Walker’s 305 games against Claremont before the club’s bye last weekend.

The 34-year-old would have already surpassed Walker’s tally had the four-times Sandover medalist Walker not elected to play on for one final season in 1976.

Nearly 50 years on, Walker admits he should have retired at the end of 1975, a few games shy of the 300-game milestone.

“It was a sad day because I hardly got a kick,” the 83-year-old Walker told The West Australian of his final game at the age of 36 in ’76.

“I’d retired at the start of the season and then the club had problems and they asked me to come back. So I’d come back in.

“I’d done no pre-season…I struggled through about a dozen games or something and then I just said ‘look this is crazy I can’t help anymore’ and I retired. I should have retired at the start of that season.”

Prior to The West Australian’s photo shoot ahead of Notte equalling Walker’s record at Swans, Walker had never raised the approaching games record with the former West Coast Eagles-listed player.

“I speak to him every home game,” Walker said. “(Wife) Glenyce and I go to every home game. I usually go down to the players and naturally enough say g’day to Notte and see how he’s going.

“I’ve never put any pressure on him about breaking records. I’ve never mentioned it. I just go up to him and wish him well for the day; ‘make it a good one.’

“We’ll be there when he breaks it. Records are made to be broken.”

Was Glenyce happy for her husband of 63 years’ record to go?

“Yes, he had his turn,” she said. “Time goes on.”

Walker’s career was celebrated in enemy territory early this month when he was a special guest at a West Perth lunch at Joondalup ahead of their clash with Swans.

Walker, originally from Wheatbelt town Narembeen and involved in seven of eight Swan Districts premierships as a player, director or president, recalled how he could have ended up at West Perth.

It was 1960, and the young rover was in Perth from the country and guest of the then Cardinals at their presentation night.

They had recruited Don Williams from Melbourne, and Ray Gabelich from Collingwood was planning to join the club.

He was introduced as an up-and-coming rover before he was placed at a table that included champion West Perth and WA rovers Joe Fanchi and Peter Medhurst.

Walker, who was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame in 1996, remembers no one speaking to him.

“So after about an hour and a half, I got up – being a country boy – and went out and hopped in the car and drove home,” he said.

“That was the last time I went to West Perth.”

West Perth’s loss was Swans’ gain as Walker went on to win three premierships from 1961 to ’63 under captain-coach Haydn Bunton Jr.

“I’ve had a wonderful career and had a wonderful stay at Swans,” he said.

“I was fortunate enough to get through it all; didn’t have any real bad injuries.”

Walker said he had played against some great West Perth players, many of whom became good friends, including WAFL competition games record holder Mel Whinnen (371 games).

The long-time publican also recalled tussles with Cardinals rover Bill Valli, who was present at the Joondalup lunch and described Walker as a “slippery” and “tenacious” rover.

“Billy was a little cheat out on the ground,” Walker quipped to the West Perth lunch about the former Cardie. “I can say that because he’s my size.

“But Bill was a great player for you guys over the years; we had many a battle out there.”

He said Notte’s record-breaking career was a credit to him.

“How good is it; in today’s football for a player to last the same as Tony has and continually play well week after week,” Walker said.

“He got a job down in Bunbury or Busselton way and he travels up every week just to play and he is playing as well as he was last year and the year before.

“So it’s a great credit to the young fellow for what he’s done. And records are made to be broken.

“And in WAFL football the Mel Whinnens and Bill Dempseys (Dempsey played 343 games for West Perth); their records are going to be very, very hard to break. If somebody breaks them, they’ve got to be a good player and also a good person.”

Notte told The West Australian before he equalled Walker’s record that he had never set out to break the record after debuting for Swans back in 2008.

“Bill’s done a lot in his football career and a lot for this football club so just to stand anywhere next to him and alongside his name, I’m very proud,” Notte said.

South Fremantle will host Swan Districts and Notte for his 306th game for the club on Saturday at Fremantle Oval at 2.10pm.