Adelaide co-captains Taylor Walker and Rory Sloane say the mood at West Lakes is sky high after a strong pre-season

Adelaide’s co-captains Rory Sloane and Taylor Walker say they can’t remember being this excited on the eve of a season thanks to a fit and healthy list and now it’s finally time to put it to the test.

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Adelaide’s co-captains Rory Sloane and Taylor Walker say they can’t remember being this excited on the eve of a season thanks to a fit and healthy list and now it’s finally time to put it to the test.

As the Crows prepare to name their Round 1 team to play Hawthorn at home on Saturday, 42 of 44 players are available for AFL and SANFL selection with only Paul Seedsman (finger) and Luke Brown (foot) sidelined.

It could not be more different to this time last year when Adelaide’s medical room was already filling up and off-field distractions were mounting.

But Sloane said there would be some hard luck stories in the Crows’ team to host the Hawks this weekend after they went 2/2 in the JLT Series.

“The fact that you could probably squeeze another six to 10 blokes in that side quite easily, that excites me the most,” he said.

Walker and Rory Atkins share a joke at training. Picture: Sarah Reed.

“Every side always changes from Round 1 but I can’t remember going into a season with such a large amount of depth of guys who deserve a game of footy.

“There will be some guys who are disappointed but I think that’s the sign of a good footy team.

“We had a lot of injuries last year but again you saw guys like Jordan Gallucci and Myles Poholke get game time, Wayne Milera came on in leaps and bounds, now they’re going to make us even stronger.”

Sloane and Walker - who played just 12 and 14 games respectively due to injuries last year - say they have completed full pre-seasons and are buoyed by a similar output across the board.

Walker estimates he did 20 per cent of pre-season last year and this time 85 per cent which he says is close to his maximum given his age and injury history.

“I’m healthy and have done all the programs I’ve had to, and like I found out last year if you do the work you put yourself in a good spot to play the way you want to and help the team perform,” Walker said.

“I’ve dropped a fair bit of weight because I want to be able to get around the ground, we spoke about it at the end of last year and I’ve made a conscious effort with everything.

“We have a healthy list to choose from, which if you compare to last year we probably didn’t.

“And all three facets of our game - be it contest, team defence and attack we’ve trained it all pre-season and improved.

“We’re confident, we’ve done the work and the plan is to play finals.”

Sloane said getting through another pre-season slog this summer was made easier by having the entire team alongside him.

“You can enjoy the hard work a bit more rather than with a few less numbers it can get pretty solid,” Sloane said.

“It feels like we have a really healthy list and when everyone’s healthy they’re up and about. You’re in a much better mood than if you’re in rehab that’s for sure.

“Every year the group changes significantly, this year we have another seven or eight guys into the system and you develop new relationships.

“This year has been strongly built off everyone being on the track, enjoying the hard work, and if you can do that it’s a great start.

“Then throughout the year it’s obviously a lot more enjoyable if you can win games and now we’ve got to prove ourselves.

“This core group has been through a lot, you learn something from everything and it definitely makes you stronger.”