Adelaide on-baller Ben Keays says he is prepared to split his time between forward and midfield this season, to do whatever is best for team success.

The Crows had their penultimate training session on Wednesday, before their Round One clash with GWS on Sunday.

Speaking to the media after the session, Keays said he was expecting to start the game up forward.

“I reckon I might start with the forwards, but I’ll probably mix between the two (midfield and forward),” Keays said.

“We’ve been blessed that we have had a pretty healthy list.

“We’ve got some young guys that have taken some really big strides so we’ll get some of those guys in around the footy and myself ahead of the ball.

“That’s something that has always come naturally to me, being able to play those two roles.”

Keays has shown his ability to impact the game when forward in recent times, booting four goals in Adelaide’s pre-season game against West Coast two weeks ago.

Having spent the pre-season splitting his time between the two lines, the 26-year-old has embraced the chance to work with the forward group and learn from forwards coach James Rahilly.

“Wherever I see my magnet on the board I just go there and try to do the job to be honest,” Keays said.

“I love working with Rahills, I reckon he is an absolute brilliant mind, we are really lucky to have him, he’s really good to work with.

“I’ve learnt a lot from him, building my game now, rounding it out and adding some things so it’s been good mixing between the two lines and picking up those little tips.”

While Keays has applied his trade as a hard-nosed midfielder since joining the Crows in 2020, he said the move forward may be the best thing for his body, with the physical toll of playing in the middle limiting his impact for portions of last season.

“As a natural mid you do want to be around the ball and get your hands on it,” Keays said.

“Being able to mix between the two lines is probably good for me in terms of you get a little bit of a break from the bash and crash.

“Hopefully it keeps me fresh because last year I sort of broke down towards the middle of the season, probably was a bit too much load on the body.”

Despite Adelaide struggling in past meetings against GWS, Keays said the side had learnt from those losses but still expected the Giants to be a challenging opponent.

“I expect it to be a tough battle for sure because they are a super team,” Keays said.

“I’ve always felt GWS have a strong culture from a role player perspective.

“They’ve got some real hard nuts in there, so yes they are skilful but I think they also bring a pretty hard edge.”

Heading towards Round One, Keays is confident in Adelaide’s ability and says there has been a real shift in attitude amongst the players this pre-season, which should put them in good stead for 2023. 

“I think we have worked heavily on our culture and its starting to pay dividends, I definitely feel like something has shifted,” Keays said.

“I think the training standards have lifted, I think this preseason we went to a new level.

“Some of the staff we have added over the last two-three years, Burgo just to name one and assistant coaches as well – we’ve just added some great people.

“We are coming to work with a goal and have set a high standard and I think we really saw that this preseason.”

Adelaide plays GWS at Giants Stadium on Sunday, with the first bounce at 12:40pm SA time.