Trent Hentschel Biography

Adelaide forward Trent Hentschel retires from football after failing to overcome a serious knee injury that has prevented him from returning to football at the highest level.

"In talking to the medical staff it has become very clear that my knee isn't up to playing in the AFL and will only get worse, so I think this is the best decision for myself and the club," Hentschel said.

"I have loved every minute at the Adelaide Football Club and feel very privileged and lucky to have been part of the club for the past nine seasons. I can't thank the club enough, firstly for giving me an opportunity to play in the AFL and then for giving me the chance to get back to playing again after my knee injury. I feel very lucky to have achieved that after my injury."

Adelaide coach Neil Craig faces a call on Trent Hentschel's future without seeing the forward play another AFL game this season.

"I had a discussion with Trent yesterday. He feels like he's progressing, but he needs to do more to come back into AFL-level competition," Craig said.

Craig said that Hentschel's troublesome knee would be a key factor in his decision about the forward's future.

"We know it can hold up at SANFL level, but what I have to try and get as much information on and try and predict is to whether it will hold up at AFL level, which is obviously another step up again," he said.

Neil Craig is optimistic about Trent Hentschel's future however it will depend on the outcome of his seventh knee operation.

"Hopefully, it is just scar tissue and I think he'll be able to continue his career. It's open-ended though, isn't it? I'm open-minded about it and Trent's open-minded about it," Craig said.

"I had a good discussion with him yesterday, after the game and again this morning. He's very resilient and what I do know is that he won't be left wondering. It's a crucial surgery for him obviously, but I'm still really positive."

Adelaide forward Trent Hentschel could face further surgery on his right knee after the joint swelled in Adelaide's game against Melbourne.

"He's had the same thing (swelling) a couple of times in the past, so he knew pretty well straight away what was going on when it started swelling up on Sunday," Adelaide physical performance manager Stephen Schwerdt.

"The surgery he had last time helped him and got him back playing. That seems to be the most logical solution at the moment, but we won't know until he sees the specialist."

Patrick Dangerfield suffers a serious neck injury after being gang-tackled by three Melbourne Demons players.

Scans clear Dangerfield of neck fractures but he will remain in hospital for further scans to determine the extent of his injury.

Teammates Trent Hentschel, Nathan Bock and Kurt Tippett also suffered knee, hamstring and ankle injuries in the same game leaving the Crows without a bench for the last quarter and a half where the Demons were able to run out the game to a 16-point victory.

Trent Hentschel is attacking this pre-season with added vigour while gaining confidence in his body to withstand the rigours of training since recovering from a serious knee injury.

"My focus now is to attack the sessions, not just get through," Hentschel said.

"This is the first pre-season in a while I've been able to do that because I've had the confidence in my body to actually go out and not just try to get through sessions, and not worry about getting injured all the time.

"That's enabled me to do extra work. I lost that chance to improve over the last two or three years with my knee so I'm trying to catch up on as much improving as I can over the pre-season."

In the four years since his last finals appearance, injuries had Adelaide forward Trent Hentschel think his best was behind him.

Hentschel is now back in the Crows side after overcoming a horrific knee injury and is set to play a key role in the club's finals aspirations for 2009.

"The whole way through my rehabilitation I doubted I could ever get back here, but I'm glad we've made it and there's a really good feeling around the club at the moment," Hentschel said.

"I'm really excited because I haven't played finals since 2005 and it will probably be the biggest crowd I've played in front of since I've been back."

Adelaide coach Neil Craig expresses his delight in Trent Hentschel's return game against the Hawk after the injury-plagued forward kicked 4 goals from 14 possessions.

"I thought he was great. He looked the best he's ever looked going into this game, but he's not out of the woods yet," Craig said.

"But he played at a high speed, he played what I call hard footy - and we wanted Trent to do that, not just meander through the game and be tentative because he has to find out, he wants to find out himself. He's not here to just hang around a footy club at AFL level."

Unlucky forward Trent Hentschel will make his second comeback from injury this year for the Crows against the Hawks.

Adelaide coach Neil Craig says Hentschel's performance will determine if he has fully recovered from ongoing knee complaints.

"Trent's probably in the best condition and feels as good as he's felt since the initial injury. He's in good form and now is the appropriate time to find out," Craig said.

"We need to find out now, so we can make a good decision in conjunction with Trent about where we go from a list management point of view."

Adelaide forward Trent Hentschel has suffered yet another injury setback with his troublesome knee.

"It's disappointing for Trent, but it's not all lost," Adelaide coach Neil Craig said.

"It's not structural thing, as such, but when he really ups the ante he gets a bit of bleeding in there. The surgeons are reasonably confident that they can still help him, so we'll keep pushing on with it."

Trent Hentschel will have an arthroscopy on his right knee tomorrow, sidelining the Crows forward for about a month.

Hentschel's knee blew up during the first half of Friday night’s loss to St Kilda, the second time it has done so this season after also filling with fluid following Adelaide's pre-season match against the Indigenous All-Stars in Darwin.

Trent Hentschel only needs to make it through Friday practice to complete a remarkable comeback.

In what the Crows describe as a great day for the club, courageous Hentschel will play his first AFL-sanctioned match in 2 1/2 years tomorrow.

Crows Rhett Biglands and Trent Hentschel, who both underwent knee reconstruction surgeries at the end of last year, set their sights on playing in Dubai against Collingwood in February.

Biglands is fully recovered while Hentschel, who suffered a more severe injury, has made promising progress in his rehabilitation.

"It would only be a selection issue with Rhett," physical performance manager Stephen Schwerdt said. "He's been into full training right from the start of the pre-season."

"Trent's still got a few boxes to cross off, but its still six or seven weeks until Dubai," Schwerdt said with regards to Hentschel.

"He's had a couple of little, minor soft tissue problems, but that's not unexpected. We're really happy with the way he's progressed."