Adelaide defender Wayne Milera is anticipating a return to his best football as he returns to contact training in the Crows' pre-season this week, following a lengthy recovery from a ruptured patella tendon in 2024.
Milera played just three games last year but was a regular selection in 2023, forging a solid place in the side after just 12 appearances in 2022.
The 2015 Pick 11 feels as mentally and physically strong as he's ever been, with his recent advancements in his recovery making football a refreshing part of Milera's life again.
Milera said he is grateful to get back to full health and participate with the main squad again after his long stint on the sidelines.
"As a professional athlete you always want to be out there training, so when that is taken away from you for a period of time, it makes you appreciate being out on the track even more," Milera told AFC Media.
"Physically I am in a really good space out there, I'm going into contests not feeling or thinking about the knee which is great, there's no second-guessing at all out there and I'm really confident in the work I've done to get to this point.
"As a result, I've been able to train with a lot of freedom, just taking each drill as it comes and running around with a lot of confidence.
"It's been incredibly refreshing from a mental standpoint as well, being out there getting after it with the boys and just playing footy, it's what I love to do."
Milera said the recovery process has been smoother than his previous knee injury.
The 27-year-old suffered a ruptured patella tendon on his other knee in 2021, which ruled him out for the entirety of the season. He also suffered foot stress fractures in 2020 which again limited him to two matches for the season.
Fortunately, Milera has progressed swimmingly through his current recovery with plans to integrate into contact training.
"Everything is tracking very positively at the moment, thankfully," Milera said.
"The process (of my recovery) has been a lot smoother this time around, the knee has felt really good throughout, and I've been able to tick off my goals in good time.
"At this stage, I am pretty much into full training, I've had a little bit of contact progression which is the last thing I need to tick off, and I'm in the midst of doing that now.
"From here I'm just keen to keep getting training sessions under my belt, and I should be all good to go by the time the first trial matches roll around.
"It (the recovery process) has been a bit of a grind, especially those early stages when you are getting your head around missing games and you aren't able to do too much.
"So that's been my past nine months in a nutshell, it's certainly been challenging, but at the same time I've grown a lot both physically and mentally which I think will really help me."
Stranded on 99, Milera will be eyeing a Round 1 return to achieve his 100-game milestone. However, he remains adamant that the little goals are the key to continuing his linear recovery.
"My main priorities at the moment is continuing to get that fitness base back and training at a high-standard to put my best case forward ahead of the upcoming block of trial matches," Milera said.
"I'm not looking too far ahead (in terms of goals for the season), and this time of year it is all about taking each training session as it comes and getting better each day.
"I'm all about ticking off those short-term goals, as if you look too far ahead sometimes you can lose track of what you are trying to achieve on a daily basis."
Milera is aiming to return to the side in time for Adelaide's scratch match against Port Adelaide, as well as the Community Series clash against Brisbane.
Adelaide's season officially begins at home against St Kilda in Round 1 on Sunday, March 16.
