Andrew McLeod Biography

Adelaide expect the Indigenous All-Stars to use key Crow Andrew McLeod only sparingly when he captains the side in Darwin on Saturday.

On Saturday, McLeod will become the Crows' record-holder when he lines up in his 313th appearance for the club.

"It would be a tough ask for someone to play 300 games, especially with the way teams are playing now," McLeod said on Wednesday.

"It's very high impact so it's a lot harder to play. I probably will be surprised to see someone in the modern era play 300 games, but who's to say someone won't?"

At 32 and about to play his record-breaking 313th Crow game - Andrew McLeod is still being tagged.

"I look forward to those challenges and it's nice to have teams still show that respect, but for me I've obviously got a picture in my head and 'Craigy' does as well of what he expects, what I expect, how I play, and I've been pretty happy with it.

"There's been a couple of games not up to scratch this year but I've been happy with the last couple of games."

Adelaide veteran says belief and work ethic contributed to his stunning return form that capped off a scintillating 30-disposal performance against the Bombers in the elimination final at AAMI Stadium.

"Sometimes you work pretty hard and you don't get the reward, but somewhere down the track it's going to come. I've been lucky that I've got some reward for hard work over the past few weeks," McLeod said.

"Everyone plays their role and you might not get the recognition from outside the footy club, but certainly inside you do. You don't get caught up in what other people think. You listen to your coaches because what they say is gospel."

Adelaide captain Simon Goodwin says that the Crows over 30 including himself, Tyson Edwards, Andrew McLeod and Brett Burton feel like they have unfinished business after losing a semi-final in heartbreaking fashion to Collingwood.

"All four of us are reasonably keen to go on, but at the same time I don't think anyone of us have had a conversation with the footy club or sat down and done our review yet," Goodwin said.

"The result from the weekend is certainly painful. You feel as a player that there's some unfinished business there... there's some unfinished business there that we'd like to contribute towards."

Kurt Tippett signs three-year contract extension with Adelaide to stave off overtures from the Gold Coast while veterans Brett Burton, Andrew McLeod, Simon Goodwin and Tyson Edwards re-sign to play on for one year.

The re-signings were announced at the club's 2009 best and fairest awards with club champion Bernie Vince saying he was always confident of Tippett staying.

"I was in Kurt's ear every day for him to stay. It came down to his decision, but I always had faith he would stay," Vince said on Friday night.

"He gets on really well with everyone here and I even told people back home [in Stansbury] that I'd be really surprised if he left at any stage."

A depleted Adelaide is confident champion Andrew McLeod will be a dangerous part of its early season forward mix after observing the veteran in a NAB Challenge match against Collingwood.

"Andrew played half of his game against Collingwood last week in the front half and his defensive action, his tackling and his pressure around the ground-ball in those sort of conditions was just exceptional," Noble said.

"I think you'd be more than happy to have him lining up forward for you against any opposition."

It is Andrew McLeod's sixteenth season but he has revealed that he is not thinking about retirement as the 2010 AFL season begins.

"Retirement is not something I'm thinking about at the moment," McLeod said in a chat session on afc.com.au.

"Although I am the oldest bloke at the club and one day it will be inevitable, there's still a bit left in this old dog...

"I'm not sure about the last year thing. I try not to worry about that too much. I just want to help the Crows be as successful as possible this year before anything else."

Andrew McLeod appears unlikely to reach the 350-game milestone after being booked for arthroscopy to examine his right knee.

McLeod, currently on 339 games, would have had to have played every remaining game this season to reach the milestone as the Crows appear unlikely to make the finals.

Crows coach Neil Craig believes Andrew McLeod's career is not over despite a knee operation putting the ageing star's season in doubt.

"Andrew is very clear in his mind about what he wants to do for the rest of the year, which I think is a good, healthy attitude to have," Craig said.

"He'll get back on the track and we'll have a look at his training form and how well he's moving. Then we'll make a call on selection as to whether he needs a game back at the Port Magpies or if he comes straight back in."

In his upcoming biography, Andrew McLeod says his character was tainted by the Crows' inaction over his feud with teammate Tyson Edwards.

"It is almost impossible to believe that the club was unaware that two of its champions were not speaking to each other,'' McLeod said.

Edwards' wife, Mandy, had signed an affidavit supporting tennis player Lleyton Hewitt after McLeod had taken legal action over the use of footage of them at sacred indigenous sites.

"I said to Tyson, 'Why would you put a friendship that you and I have had for over 10 years in jeopardy and why would Mandy go into court against us and talk about something she knows nothing about?','' McLeod says in the book.

"They (the Edwards') basically chose a four or five month friendship over a 10-year relationship. We just couldn't believe it.''

Andrew McLeod has played his last game of AFL football, confirming he will not be available for selection against the Crows' round 22 clash against St Kilda.

"I'm not confident that my knee is up to playing this week, let alone get through the game," McLeod said.

"I haven't been able to train properly for a long time. A new era has also started at the club and I don't want to stop a younger player from playing on Saturday."

Adelaide coach Neil Craig paid tribute to McLeod's career that has defied the odds and withstood physical turmoil to last 340 games.

"His record is outstanding. His ability to play high quality football at the top level for so long has been remarkable," Craig said.

"Great players make their mark on the biggest stage and he certainly did that."

Andrew McLeod says his troublesome knee has finally forced him into retirement after being succesfully managed over 6 or 7 years.

"I was talking to Craigy last night and he used the analogy of a tube of toothpaste. He said I'd rolled the tube up, sucked the toothpaste out and got as much as I could out of it. I suppose that's what I've done with my knee," McLeod said.

"I tried to get the better of the injury and get on top of it, but unfortunately this year it got the better of me and it didn't work out. It would be nice to have the fairytale [finish], but I couldn't have asked for a better career or a better place to finish up."