Sam Jacobs at a Adelaide Crows beach session yesterday. Picture: Simon Cross Source: The Advertiser
ADELAIDE lead ruckman Sam Jacobs is hopeful he will be spared from a repeat of last season's burn-out as the Crows build a new ruck battery at West Lakes.
Despite the loss of his regular ruck partner Kurt Tippett with an infamous defection to Sydney, Jacobs has three team-mates - Angus Graham, Josh Jenkins and Shaun McKernan - striving to be his back-up.
Collectively, this trio is also to ease the burden on Jacobs during a marathon AFL premiership campaign.
Jacobs yesterday endorsed strategically timed rests for AFL players - a theme Geelong used to perfection in its 2011 premiership run when no Cat was to be worked for more than 18 games in the 22-round home-and-away series.
Adelaide coach Brenton Sanderson last year regarded resting players as a luxury beyond his Crows.
But with Sanderson now arguing there is greater depth in his squad, resting players is a worthwhile theme of sound player management at West Lakes.
"I think Sando might be keen at some stage (to rest me) depending on how much game time I've had," said Jacobs yesterday.
After being rested from the first two weeks of Adelaide's pre-season campaign, Jacobs is expected to return to the Crows line-up for Saturday's NAB Cup clash with Geelong at Geelong.Jacobs, 25 in April, will finally join in the Crows ruck puzzle being resolved on the field.
Simply replacing Tippett as a key forward-back-up ruckman with just one of Jenkins, McKernan or Graham seems far from Adelaide's planning.
"There is a game within a game," said Jacobs of the auditioning for the Tippett vacancy in the Adelaide match 22.
"There are three going for that one spot ... it's exciting, there's still two (pre-season) games to go and, hopefully, someone puts their hand up.
"But it can also work with three talls.
"Last year we played Tippett, Taylor Walker and McKernan or Jenkins.
"Nothing will be set in stone - it could all depend on whether we are playing against a smaller defence and we want to stretch them.
"Or, if I've been taking on a bit more workload, that extra tall could help me out too."
While Jacobs wants to spare his body from burn-out this season, he is demanding more of himself in his mental approach to the game - and how he imposes himself on the contest.
It is an expectation also thrust on Jacobs by his elevation to the Adelaide leadership group this season.
"That part of my game has to go to a new level," said Jacobs.
"I need to be taking control a lot more - not only in the midfield, but when resting forward I need that confidence to be able tell blokes, no matter who it is, where we need to improve.
"This is my seventh year and I've only played 60 games...I'm not to my 100th game yet. I don't want to be a flash-in-the-pan, one-year good player. My challenge is to continue the high standard of last year.
"In the pre-season, I wanted to do every session. I've ticked that goal. Now it is time to build into the year and set myself up for another good year."
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