Long time coming: Brett Morris joins 250-game club

Roosters winger Brett Morris says Friday's game is not about him but he is quietly proud to have finally made it into the 250 club.

Originally slated to hit the milestone against the Rabbitohs at ANZ Stadium in round 25, the short turnaround from the previous week meant Morris had to withdraw with a minor calf niggle.

Instead NRL game 250 will come against the same opponents in a huge qualifying final at the SCG.

"It's pretty cool – it's taken a fair while, to be honest," Morris said.

"I've seen some guys that have debuted the same year [as me] go on to play 300 games and well over 300 now. There's been a lot of injuries along the road but I finally chalk up 250.

"It's a great achievement and something I'll look back on fondly at the end of my career."

After breaking through with 12 tries in 19 games in his 2006 debut year at the Dragons, Morris missed all but two games in 2007 due to a shoulder injury while his first two seasons at the Bulldogs, in 2015 and 2016, were wrecked by hamstring and knee injuries.

It hasn't stopped the veteran flanker racking up 18 Tests and 15 Origins plus a stunning 153 tries in the Telstra Premiership for the Dragons, Bulldogs and Roosters.

That makes a grand tally of 412 tries in 780 games for the family, with twin Josh encroaching on 300 games after father Steve's lauded career with St George and Easts in the 1980s.

"As a kid growing up you dream of playing one game so to go on and play that many, and for a family, it's pretty cool," he said.

"I was part of Josh's 250th game and we weren't doing the best at the time there at the Dogs but we managed to win a game there and make that really special.

"They are huge personal milestones but you just want to go out there as a team and worry about doing your job and try and get a win.

"I try and not worry too much about these things ... obviously after there'll be some texts and a little bit of celebration there but for me it's just another game."

He added the calf was "100%" after a week off.

"I just had a little bit of a niggle there, I tried to train throughout the week and just gave Robbo (coach Trent Robinson) the little heads up that it probably wasn't 100%," he said.

"We've got some good depth here in the club and Billy [Smith] was there waiting in the wings ready to go which made the decision to have the week off a little bit easier."

As a newcomer to the Souths-Roosters rivalry, Morris said he doesn't personally buy into it too much but appreciated how invested fans were.

"From the outside looking in even when I wasn't here you could see the fans really got up for this game," he said.

"As a player I don't buy into it too much, it takes your focus away from the game but it's great for the fans.

"Any time there's a rivalry you see the fans pack out the stadiums and they're baying for blood so it's always fun. It's a gladiator sport and these are the big games that you play for."