HERITIER Lumumba's appearance against Gold Coast at the MCG on Saturday will be his 200th in the AFL, but individual milestone aside, the new Demon says even he can't wait to see how emerging forward Jesse Hogan fares in his debut.

Lumumba, who played 199 games for Collingwood between 2005 and 2014, said the trade to Melbourne had helped to rejuvenate his football career.

"If you asked me this time last year I would have said that I would prefer to play at one club (Collingwood), but now that I've made the transition I've been able to rejuvenate my career," Lumumba said on Thursday.

"The experience has been fantastic for me, not just from a football sense, but for my life in general."

Hogan, 20, has also been named to play his first game in Demons colours, his debut coming a year later than expected after a pre-season back injury ruined his 2014 season, and more than two years after he tantalised fans with his first outings as an 18-year-old in the 2013 NAB Challenge.  

Lumumba said it was hard to play down the expectations surrounding Hogan, mainly because he has seen the exciting traits the key forward possesses each day at training.

"I'm really excited. He's been spoken about a lot but from day one I've loved the way he's gone about his football," Lumumba said.

"His preparation, his professionalism and his desire and competitiveness; all those things make up a good footballer."

Hogan has often been compared to Jonathan Brown in his Brisbane Lions heyday.

The young forward said he was still coming to terms with the interest that surrounded him.

"Honestly, it's an honour that people say that stuff about me. It's a bit unfortunate when a teammate says that, though," he said with a laugh.

"They mean well, and you'd rather be compared to someone like that than someone who's not playing.

"It gives me a bit of confidence, but it is what it is."

Hogan said he tries to disregard the noise around his football ability, but admitted it had become increasingly difficult.

"It's a hard one to ignore. You can ignore it as much as you possibly want to, but you read something or you hear something you try to avoid it … but what can you do?" he said.

Lumumba often bumps into his old teammates, given the Magpies and Demons players share a car park near AAMI Park.

"I remember seeing (Magpie) Steele Sidebottom when we arrived in the car park at the same time," Lumumba said.

"He stood there and was waiting for me because you usually wait to walk across the oval to the Westpac Centre (for Collingwood training) and he was waiting and waiting for me.

"And I just waved to him and walked off and then he said 'H, what are you doing?' and then he realised, oh, s---, you don't play for us anymore."

Lumumba said he was grateful for the opportunity coach Paul Roos and the Demons had given him.

"The initial meeting (before joining Melbourne) with Paul Roos was fantastic for me. It got me to understand what the culture would be, and Roosy's composure does permeate throughout the whole club.

"I knew straight away that that would be a fantastic environment for me to be in and I haven't been disappointed.

"This has been a really healthy change for me."