While his indigenous teammates are in Alice Springs preparing to line up for the All-Stars, Richard Tambling is in Adelaide determined to force his name back in front of the Crows selectors.

Tambling has been limited to 11 matches, including only one last season, since switching from Richmond at the end of 2010. The 26-year-old’s lone performance last year was against Essendon in round 19, where he received minimal game time after starting as a substitute.

But his season wasn’t a waste. For the first time since joining Adelaide, Tambling had an uninterrupted run of games. The quick utility played 18 games at Sturt, winning the Club’s best and fairest award. Playing across half-back, he led the Double Blues in tackles and rebound 50ms.

Tambling was named as an emergency five times in eight rounds at the latter of the AFL season, but couldn’t break into the strong Crows side. A regular at the biennial Indigenous Camp in recent years, the former Tiger made the tough decision not to return to his home state this time around.

“Having not played many games last year, I thought I would stay in Adelaide instead. I wanted to train as much as I could, get in the coaches’ ears, annoy them and try to put my name on the board,” Tambling said.

“There’s an intra-club this week too, which I thought would be a good opportunity for me to get a foot in the door and have a kick with the boys.”

Enjoying his first full pre-season “in a long time”, Tambling has impressed coach Brenton Sanderson.

“I don’t want to get our fans too excited, or pump Richard up excessively but I think he’s a ‘forgotten’ player, who is going to have a really good season,” Sanderson told FIVEaa.

“He still has a lot of improvement in him and I’ve really enjoyed working with him over the past 12 months. He’s taken a little bit longer to adjust to the change in game style. He’s as tough as they come now and I just love his speed. If we can get the ball in his hands across half-back or on a wing, he’s going to hurt the opposition.

“Hopefully, he can be a player who makes a big difference for us this year.”

Tambling has played a variety of positions throughout his 119-game AFL career.

He was recruited by Adelaide as a running half-back or wingman, but has put his hand up for a slightly different role this season.

“Michael Doughty has obviously left the Club. ‘Dogga’ is pretty much irreplaceable, but he was our lock-down defender and Sando is looking for someone to step up in that role,” Tambling said.

“We’ve got young guys like Luke Brown, Matt Jaensch and Rory Laird who can play that type of role, but hopefully I can slot in there and also run off and create from the backline.”

Tambling admitted his first two years at West Lakes had been tough, but said he was confident he could resurrect his career at the highest level.

“I’m here to play AFL, but winning the best and fairest at Sturt did show me I was doing the right things. I just had to wait for an opportunity,” he said.

“There’s no point throwing your head back and cracking it, you’ve got to keep working hard and hope your turn comes sooner rather than later.

“I’ve got two beautiful kids, who keep me happy and on my toes, and we’ve also got a great bunch of lads here. They’re excellent to be around and always help you out with what you’re going through.

“I just want to get one game to begin with. After that, it’s obviously about playing consistent footy and playing my role for the team. It’s been an enjoyable pre-season … really tough, but enjoyable and now we can’t wait for the games to begin.”

Tambling has also been keeping busy in his role as an ambassador for the Beach Energy Aboriginal Youth Leadership and Governance Program. The second Beach Energy Camp, involving 30 young people from the APY Lands, was held at West Lakes this week.

Tambling, who hails from a remote community in the Northern Territory, said the Camp – run by Crows legend Andrew McLeod – was a fantastic initiative.

“The Club travels to the APY Lands at the end of every season to run a program promoting healthy eating and drinking and lifestyle choices,” he said.

“The Federal Government and Beach Energy joined up to create the Aboriginal Youth Leadership and Governance Program, which gives us the opportunity to bring students from the APY Lands to Adelaide.

“The APY Lands are very remote, so healthy eating can be reasonably difficult because fresh fruit and vegetables are hard to come by. Alcohol and substance abuse and violence within the communities are also issues. By bringing the kids here, we’re trying to educate them about stamping that out of their lives and hopefully moving forward into a brighter future.

“To come to an AFL club and an established club like Adelaide is a big buzz for the kids. I remember growing up Andrew McLeod was my idol and now he’s here kicking the footy with these guys.”