Petrenko open to a two-bye system

ADELAIDE forward Jared Petrenko would be open-minded if the AFL reverted to the two-bye system used last season.

Jared Petrenko

ADELAIDE forward Jared Petrenko would be open-minded if the AFL reverted to the two-bye system used last season.

Revealing it was not just the older Crows in need of rest heading into the club's sole bye this weekend, Petrenko said the pace of the game was increasing.

And this is the first year AFL clubs will have just one bye during the minor round, with the three-player interchange rule in place.

"It's a pretty taxing season and having those rests during the year always helps," Petrenko said.

"Especially with the sub rule now as well, it's such a taxing game for everyone in our team."

Now in his fourth AFL season, Petrenko said his body was only just starting to adjust to the week-to-week toll of elite level.

"It's massive," Petrenko said of the importance of at least one mid-season rest.

"I've learned from experience but at this time of year the young boys like Brodie Smith and Daniel Talia - who are getting a lot of games in - it can really take a toll on your body.

"My first couple of years at this stage of the year, I was absolutely spent. I'm feeling better now, a couple of years of playing these games, you get better.

"But for the older boys, like Michael Doughty and Scott Thompson, it's also a good two weeks for them to freshen up and have a good start when we come back."

Adelaide coach Brenton Sanderson was concerned the bye could break valuable team momentum.

"I would like to keep playing, to be honest," Sanderson said.

"There's a really good energy amongst the group at the moment. But it would be foolish to not give them a good spell ... because they deserve it. But also too, just the demands of the game after a long summer it's a good chance to have a little bit of a rest.

"We've been pretty good in managing our players during the week. The game's changed now, in that it's brutal and there's a lot of high-speed running.

"We're a high interchange team but we're pretty good at managing our players throughout the week as well.

"That will continue after the bye so when it comes to match day they are in top physical condition."