Over the years, we have had stand-out debuts but have also seen some very poor first games.
Some of the all-time greats have had horrid debuts, such as the likes of Jonathan Brown, Nick Riewoldt and Sam Mitchell.
While others have had impressive to unbelievable debuts, like Riley Thilthorpe's 16 disposals and five goals in Round 6, 2021.
John Coleman famously kicked 12 goals in his first game as well.
North Melbourne small forward Harry Sheezel collected 34 disposals in his maiden match to open the season in 2023, with the teenager finding plenty of the ball in a role down back under new coach Alastair Clarkson.
In this list we take a look at 10 of the best debut games since the year 2000.
Some honourable mentions from prior to 2000 include:
David Marshall (Adelaide, 1991)
29 disposals (22 kicks), seven marks and two goals
Dean Greig (St Kilda, 1991)
39 disposals, most ever on debut.
Daniel Metropolis (West Coast, 1992)
Six goals, including four from his first four kicks.
Adrian McAdam (North Melbourne, 1993)
Seven goals and two behinds from 10 kicks on debut, left Wayne Carey to play second fiddle. Interesting to note, he followed this with 10 goals and six behinds the following week and seven goals the week after.
Scott Cummings (Essendon, 1994)
Eight goals from 10 kicks. Only three players have ever kicked more on debut.
Chris Judd (West Coast, 2002)
It has become football folklore, the beginning of Chris Judd's AFL career.
The No.3 pick in the 2001 Draft was overlooked by coach John Worsfold for round one, and Judd responded by absolutely torching West Perth in the WAFL, with 15 disposals and four goals.
Worsfold learned from his mistake, and the Sandringham Dragon never played in the WAFL again.
As for his AFL debut, it too was pretty handy.
At the home of football, the MCG, against a powerhouse club in Collingwood, the midfielder's dash caught the eye of the football world. And they never took their eye off him again.
He finished with 19 disposals, 12 contested possessions, six inside 50s, five clearances and a goal.
Everyone knows how the career of the 2021 Hall of Famer would pan out at both the Eagles and Carlton.
Mark McGough will always be remembered for winning the 2002 Anzac Medal in just his second game, and for good reason.
He was just 17 at the time and still in high school when the chunky youngster made his name on one of the biggest stages in AFL.
It was only five days prior that he made his debut, another standout game.
In a 41-point win against the Hawks, McGough recorded 22 disposals, six clearances and two goals from four scoring shots.
He earned himself two Brownlow votes for his brilliant debut.
That tells the tale of the boy from Mulwala, as the rest of his career didn't really pan out like his first games suggested it would.
After three seasons he was delisted by the Pies and spent two years at the Saints, only managing 12 games before being delisted once more.
His career was over at 22-years-old and 49 games, but he and everyone else will never forget Anzac Day 2002 and an impressive debut the week before.
Drafted at pick No.2, it probably wasn't a surprise that Andrew Walker would have one of the best debut games ever.
The 17-year-old, still studying VCE, demonstrated a classy performance that included one-handed pickups great ball use.
The boy that hailed from the banks of the Murray and Campaspe River recorded 26 disposals, four clearances and four tackles.
He also gave a sneak peek of what was to come throughout his career with marking prowess, notching up nine marks.
Walker took a famous mark in 2011, which was arguably the true mark of the year, but he almost could have earned the award back in his first game, with a high flying attempt, he just couldn't keep the ball on the way down.
The game resulted in a Rising Star nomination and a single Brownlow vote.
The Bendigo Pioneer retired in 2016 after 202 games.
A debut on the massive stage of 'Dreamtime at the G' is sure to phase many, but Dean Polo thrived on it.
Drafted in 2004 at pick 20, the Gippsland prospect finally debuted in round 6, 2006, in front of 58,439 spectators.
Polo was instrumental in the Tigers' two-point win over the Bombers, with 28 disposals and three goals. His third of which levelled the score in the dying stages of the game.
His performance was rewarded with the Yiooken Award as best on-field and a Rising Star nomination.
Richmond faithful would have been delighted, as it looked like a future star was born, however, that day would be the highlight of his career.
A career that spanned eight years for just 77 games at both the Tigers and St Kilda.
Mature age recruit Bradd Dalziell popped out of nowhere to have an all-time debut game for Brisbane.
The 21-year-old provided a masterclass performance against the Eagles, with 32 disposals, seven marks and five tackles.
His disposal count was a then-record for a player on debut since Champion Data began counting statistics in 1992.
Surprisingly, old "Razzle Dazzle" wasn't nominated for the Rising Star award for his performance.
Dalziell had a great 2008 season, averaging 26.4 disposals but his good form was short-lived.
He was traded to the team he debuted against, West Coast at the end of 2009, and was eventually delisted in 2013 after 43 games (28 at the Eagles).
Beau Muston put on a stellar performance in his debut in 2009, four years after being drafted at pick 22 in 2005.
Three knee reconstructions resulted in the Murray Bushrangers prospect playing no games in his first three seasons.
However, once he finally got his chance, Muston made up for lost time, recording 31 disposals and an incredible goal from outside 50 near the boundary.
We will never know what his career would have been like had injuries not held him back, with the first game showing the potential to be a star, it was not to be though.
Muston was delisted the next year after only managing 13 games in five seasons.
Two years after Bradd Dalziell set the record for most possessions in a debut game since 1992, one that many thought would be hard to break, Michael Barlow entered the fray and did just that.
Taken at pick 8 in the 2010 Rookie Draft, the mature aged recruit was given his chance at AFL level in Round 1.
In a demolition of the Adelaide Crows, Barlow was one of the Dockers' best, gathering 33 disposals with two goals to boot.
He continued his form through the year and was best on field in his first Derby, winning the Ross Glendinning Medal.
An all-time great debut season was cut short in Round 14 when the Shepparton man broke his leg.
Barlow would go on to have a 141 game career at both Fremantle and Gold Coast (15 games).
Not to say his career wasn't already good but had his leg held up more, who knows what would have transpired.
Kicking a goal with your first kick in league football would be a dream come true, but doing so with your second, and then even third, is truly out of this world.
Jason Tutt must have been feeling all sorts during his AFL debut for the Western Bulldogs.
Pick 31 in the 2009 Draft, Tutt surprised fans with 26 disposals, four goals and two goal assists in his very first game.
The Canberra export and Dogs supporters would have thought this was too good to be true. In the end, it was.
Tutt quickly went from revelation and potential star to a fringe player and only managed 26 games in his five seasons at Footscray.
He moved to Carlton, playing only 14 games before being delisted.
The debut was the standout in a 40 game career and was never topped.
After joining Essendon just months prior to their season opener, Martin was awarded with a debut in Round 1, facing Geelong at the MCG in front of a packed crowd.
While the Cats dismantled the Dons to claim a 66-point win in what was an early blow for Ben Rutten's side, arguably the biggest talking from the match was Martin's performance.
The Western Australian booted five goals and collected 27 disposals in his first appearance at AFL level, stunning onlookers on his way to collecting the Round 1 Rising Star nomination.
Martin would go on to have a stellar rookie season for Essendon, where he would finish eighth in the Crichton Medal voting and fifth on the Rising Star Award leaderboard.
In the same round where Martin booted five majors to put his name up in lights, Rachele followed suit with an equal goal haul against Fremantle in his side's season opener.
The Crows would fall narrowly short to the Dockers thanks to a stunning 'hand of god' spoil from Fremantle defender Heath Chapman, but without Rachele, Adelaide mightn't have even gotten close to a win.
The Murray Bushrangers product collected 14 disposals, 5 marks and 3 tackles in his maiden AFL appearance and would end his debut year with 17 goals to his name from 13 matches.
Another stunning debut from the opening weekend of the 2022 season, with Daicos collecting 27 disposals and recording over 400 metres gained in his first game in the black and white.
That appearance would be no outlier in Daicos' remarkable debut season for Collingwood, with the father-son gun enjoying what is arguably the best maiden campaign of this century.
Unlike Martin and Rachele, Daicos would play a part in a victory in his first game in the top flight, defeating St Kilda by 17 points.
That same match would also see St Kilda's mature-aged recruit Jack Hayes boot three goals on debut to earn a late honourable mention in this list.