Adelaide midfielder Harry Schoenberg says competition for spots is heating up, with the squad almost at full availability ahead of Round One. 

The Crows are preparing to travel to Perth to continue their pre-season fixtures, with a match simulation against Fremantle on Friday, before a practice game against West Coast on March 3.

Speaking to the media after the Captain’s run on Thursday, Schoenberg said the Crows were heading into the games with defender Andrew McPherson as the only player on the injury list.

As revealed on Tuesday, veteran forward Taylor Walker would miss Friday’s match against Fremantle, with coaches keen to manage his training loads.

But Walker was set to feature in the clash against West Coast.

“Everyone has put their hands up for selection for this Friday except Tex and Andrew McPherson, so that’s a really good spot to be in,” Schoenberg said.

“Lairdy (Rory Laird) and Sam Berry are probably the main two who have taken those two (midfield spots).

“But there’s a fair few other players who are coming through, like Jake Soligo, (Izak) Rankine and (Josh) Rachele at times and Sloaney (Rory Sloane) and Keaysy (Ben Keays).

“It’s making us younger boys probably earn our spot a bit more… We’ve got two games coming up so I really want to continue my form and coming into Round One, put my hand up for selection.”

“It’s making us younger boys probably earn our spot a bit more.

Ahead of his fourth AFL campaign, Schoenberg said he had focused on getting fitter and putting more muscle on, as he aimed to match it with the best on-ballers in the competition.

“I think I’ve had a pretty good pre-season,” Schoenberg said.

“My main goals were to get a bit fitter and just to get an elite midfielder body.

“I’ve knocked that on the head, so now I can just play some good footy.”

The 22-year-old, who lined up in 16 AFL matches last season, said he was looking forward to travelling to WA and fine tuning for the 2023 season.

“It’s going to be really enjoyable,” Schoenberg said.

“We’ve got two games and we want to go over there and play our best footy.

“There’s a lot of belief in the group at the moment and our pre-season has been really good, so we should go into these next two games really confident.

“We’ve got a really healthy list at the moment, so we want to go over there and get our heads in the right place just before Round One.”

For details on how to watch Adelaide’s pre-season matches, click here.