ADELAIDE Crows forward Kurt Tippett believes he’s on target to better his breakout year of 2008 this season.

The 200cm Queenslander was recognised with the Crows’ ‘Emerging Talent’ award last year after booting 17 goals in 19 AFL games.

Tippett’s bag of four majors against Melbourne in round eight also earned him a NAB Rising Star nomination.

The 21-year-old’s scoreboard return could’ve been even better if not for a goalkicking percentage of just 50 per cent. Determined to make the most of his opportunities in front of goal, Tippett sat down with coach Neil Craig during the off-season and devised a plan to improve his accuracy.

Tippett, who only took up Australian Rules Football four years ago, was rarely without a Sherrin in his hand over the summer.

“When the body was feeling good, I’d just get out on Max Basheer Reserve and kick as many as I could just to get that repetition,” Tippett told afc.com.au.

“One Sunday (on a day off), I was out there for an hour-and-a-half with Steve Sanders, who was good enough to get up early just to kick the ball back to me.

“They say you have to kick 10,000 balls to get it down pat, and I’ve still got a fair way to get to that number. I’ll keep practising and, hopefully, that will show during the season.”

Often, players coming into the AFL system have been kicking a certain way since childhood, making it nearly impossible to alter. But for Tippett, who has still played only 50-or-so career games, it’s not too late. Coaches David Noble and Peter Jonas have been able to work with the basketball convert to fix a few ‘technical issues’ with his style.

The strapping forward’s hard work was on show in Friday night’s 32-point loss to St Kilda. Tippett, who has overcome nagging knee tendonitis, slotted through three goals without a miss to lead Adelaide’s scoring.

“My kicking has definitely evolved,” Tippett said.

“I’ve become a lot more comfortable in front of goal, and I think that’s due to my work over the pre-season and the fact that I kicked so many balls.”

Craig will be looking for another solid contribution from his developing power forward this week in the absence of Trent Hentschel.

The unlucky Hentschel will undergo another procedure on his troublesome knee, this time to remove debris floating in the joint.

His absence could open the door for unpredictable forward Nick Gill, who dominated for North Adelaide on Saturday. Scott Stevens (hamstring) is also a chance to resume.

The Crows struggled to move the ball into attack with purpose on Friday night, but Tippett was confident the club’s new forward structure will be able to produce winning scores.

“We’ve got a lot more freedom up forward. We’ve been learning to read the game a lot better, and (new forwards coach David Noble) has given us a license to play the game on how we see it unfolding,” Tippett said.

“It’s definitely a more instinctive style, which is going to make us a lot more dangerous and less predictable, so hopefully we’ll kick bigger scores.”