Tyson Stengle cut a lonely figure on a suburban paddock at one point in his crumbling AFL career.

The Wirangu and Ngarrindjeri man was left running laps and taking shots at goal on his own while still under contract.

Adelaide had forced Stengle to train in isolation for months due to a growing list of criminal misdemeanours.

The latest was a drink-driving charge after police also found Stengle with an illicit substance.

After 16 AFL matches, Adelaide sacked him weeks before the 2021 season after Richmond traded him away following just two appearances in his rookie season.

But Stengle can now look back at that lowest point, realising the solo hard yards was the making of one of the most exciting AFL forwards to emerge in the game.

"I trained on my own for a couple of months and got fitter than I had ever been before," he told Nine Media.

"I guess there's a little bit of fire there from just being on your own."

Stengle runs out for his 100th match on Friday night against the Brisbane Lions more than four years since being left at the crossroads, and in his own words, the humble crumber has Geelong to thank for reaching a milestone comeback.

The 26-year-old will also run through the celebratory banner sharing a landmark match with his club captain, Patrick Dangerfield, who will play his 350th AFL game.

"It means a lot more," Stengle said of sharing the spotlight with one of the AFL's icons.

"Obviously, I really didn't think I would get to this position."

Joining a third AFL club coincided with his retired uncle, Eddie Betts, joining the Cats staff, who indirectly took Stengle aside to mentor his Wirangu 'brother'.

Not long after turning Stengle around, Betts' wife, Anna Scullie, was granted special dispensation to negotiate his next contract, despite not holding accreditation to be a player agent, but having instead a personal and cultural understanding of Indigenous players' issues since dealing with her superstar husband's football affairs.

Not that Stengle had any inkling that the best of his career was yet to come.

"When I first rocked up at pre-season, I did not know what was going to happen," he said.

Stengle turned his fortunes around too, amid a 50-goal premiership season while being named in the All-Australian side the same year.

He has since kicked 146 more goals across 83 games.

"I am grateful for what they have done and how much they have trusted and respected me, as a player to play me every week for three or four years," Stengle said.

"I love going out there and playing with my teammates and getting my teammates involved, and doing the little things on defence and doing the little things in offence – even if it is a tap-on to a teammate or a score assist, or just getting involved in the scoring chain to help the team out."

Nowadays Stengle is indisputably a better-rounded player than a goalkicker sneakily hiding in a forward pocket.

He is the AFL's equal-second contributor for goal assists while also laying the second-most tackles inside 50 metres this season.

The secret to Stengle's success is akin to what Geelong has done over the past two decades to aid countless players towards snaring four premierships from seven grand final appearances.

"Geelong understood from the moment I walked in the door I am a quieter bloke," Stengle said.

"Then they respected me as a person and the way I liked to go about my life and go about my footy, which is not putting too much pressure on me to do this and do that.

"They do that with everyone at the club."

The nurturing role Betts' family first played when his last season for the Crows overlapped Stengle's first, before continuing with Scullie, who was able to extend his time at Geelong until the end of 2029, has taken him back to a safe place growing up.

At age four Stengle was a ward of the state, one of two siblings who were removed from the care of his parents into the arms of one of his grandparents. When she suddenly passed away in his teenage years, he was placed in the care of his other grandparents, Emily and Cecil Betts.

Stengle says a similar level of care has been shown by Geelong.

"The most important part was that Geelong had my back the whole way through," Stengle said.

"They supported me, and they put everything around me, and they wanted to help me.

"That is why I am so grateful to this footy club. They always have their players' back no matter what. They never judge you – they are always trying to find a way to support you."

Geelong have been tested on one occasion though, much like Adelaide had, but in a less serious fashion.

Stengle celebrated a five-point win against Adelaide at a Geelong nightspot, only to find his way mysteriously in the back of an ambulance on his way to hospital.

The club checked on his wellbeing, offering any support he needed while Scott and Dangerfield stood strong in front of cameras and media scrutiny of their public support for Stengle.

During internal discussions, the player that once called Ceduna home was said to have turned his phone off, paid attention to the advice, and accepted the hugs from loyal teammates.

That kind of support has led Stengle to a milestone which once seemed far away.

"I've had a lot of good players around me, which has made me a much better player (and) that helped me perform as I did in 2022," he said.

"Ever since then the players and the coaches around me have helped me to improve a lot."