Vice-captain Jack Ziebell says his best-on-ground performance against Adelaide in round 22 last year has had no bearing on his approach for this Sunday’s clash.

RELATED: Ziebell player profile

The 24-year-old booted four goals, accumulated four contested marks and had 25 touches after drifting forward in the second half when the two sides last met during the regular season. It was enough for three Brownlow votes.

But Ziebell said he won’t enter the game with extra confidence, despite his individual efforts against the Crows last season.

“You don’t think about that too much to tell you the truth, that’s in the past and you look to the future,” Ziebell told NMFC.com.au on Thursday.

“I’m just going to go out there on the weekend and play my role to the best of my ability.”

Watch Jack Ziebell's Round 22 highlights

Although Ziebell has the potential to again move forward in patches and contribute on the scoreboard, he said the midfield battle against the Crows is at the forefront of his mind.

“Hopefully big ‘Goldy’ (ruckman Todd Goldstein) can get his hands on the ball and down to us midfielders and we can make the most of it,” he said.

“A lot of your mindset is around your first contest and your next contest, so making sure you can do everything right to win the footy in a contested situation and clear the ball.”

The 188cm on-baller underwent post-season shoulder surgery last year which delayed his start to 2015, but he’s pleased to have been able to increase his workload in time for the season opener.

In a further plus, Ziebell said he has fully recovered after being concussed and carried from the ground on a stretcher in the second term of North’s final NAB Challenge match against Richmond.

“This week I’ve done all the training, completed everything and felt really good,” he said.

“I’ve improved every day since the concussion, and since mid-last week, I’ve been 100 per cent.”

With his injury concerns now a distant memory, Ziebell said his sole focus – and that of his teammates’ – is to be well prepared to take on the Crows at Adelaide Oval.

“They’ve got some star players around, you look at all three lines of the ground – up forward, ‘Tex’ Walker and Josh Jenkins; in the midfield, Rory Sloane, Sam Jacobs, Patty Dangerfield – so we’ve got to really make sure we’re on top of those types of guys,” he said.

“They’ve got their ability and they’ve shown over a long period of time to be able to be match-winners – all of them.

“It’s going to be really important for us to be across them and the way they like to play their footy ... the way they want to take the game on and move the ball quickly, so we’ve got to make sure we’re defending them really well.”

Ziebell said he is aiming to play every game this season – something he hasn’t been able to achieve in his six seasons at the Roos.

“I haven’t played a full season of AFL footy yet and this is my seventh year,” he said.

“I’d like to be able to play every game and just keep improving and making sure my consistency is right up there as well.”