Adelaide sophomore Josh Rachele has his sights set on more minutes through the midfield in 2023 as he looks to build on a promising, yet frustrating, debut campaign in the AFL.
The Murray Bushrangers product exploded onto the scene in the opening round of last season, booting five goals on debut in a narrow loss to Fremantle.
The teenager kept the hot run of form alive in the weeks after, with Rachele amassing 12 goals from five games to be among the league's leading goalkickers.
The mercurial small forward battled both injury and form across the course of his rookie season, ending his maiden year in the AFL with 13 games and 17 goals to his name.
The 2021 Pick 6 draft selection flexed his attacking acumen to be among the most impressive rookies of last year, with Rachele now eyeing the next step in his career.
While wanting to work on his aerial capabilities to be a multifaceted forward, Rachele is also hoping to break into Matthew Nicks' midfield ensemble in his second season at West Lakes.
โA big key focus for me coming in was my contested marking, I wanted to take that to another level,โ Rachele told Crows media.
โI don't want to be that stock standard small forward that stays on the ground, I think I can play taller for my height.
โI think having that extra string to your bow (playing in the midfield), especially as a forward you can have some games where it's hard to get the footy.
โSo getting thrown in a few centre bounces, I think that will help as well.โ
The Crows are home to a star-studded top echelon of onballers for 2023, with Rory Laird, Jordan Dawson and Ben Keays leading the charge.
Rachele joins fellow youngsters in Sam Berry, Jackson Hately, Harry Schoenberg and Jake Soligo in likely pressing for more midfield time in 2023, while star recruit Izak Rankine may also play through the centre of the field in his first season as a Crow.
Rachele is relying on the motivation and drive from a frustrating first season to play his best football this year, hoping to rocket up the pecking order across the course of his second year with Adelaide.
โIt did frustrate me a little bit, but just drives me a lot more for 2023 to play consistent footy,โ Rachele said of his injury-impacted 2022 campaign.
โIt was more (learning) about that resilience factor and doing the little things right, continuing to do rehab stuff, my hip flex and my groin, little things like that.
โNext season it's about building consistency and playing at a high level week in, week out.โ
Adelaide will open their 2023 season against GWS in a trip to GIANTS Stadium on Sunday, March 19, with their first home game to come against Richmond the week after at Adelaide Oval before facing Port Adelaide in the Showdown.
