Crows recruit Luke Lowden says he’s looking forward to learning from new teammate Sam Jacobs.

Lowden and fellow Hawk Kyle Cheney became Crows in the final minutes of last month’s AFL trade period. Adelaide identified a need for a developed ruckman to support Jacobs following the departures of Shaun McKernan and Angus Graham.

Lowden, 24, understands he’ll have his work cut out to challenge All-Australian nominee Jacobs for the No.1 ruck position at Adelaide.

“Sam had a really strong season this year. I’ve seen him play a fair bit and he’s probably in the top two ruckmen going around at the moment,” Lowden said.

“I’ll learn a fair bit from Sam. I’ll enjoy working alongside him and, hopefully, we can push each other to get better.

“We’re both competitive, so it’ll be good fun working together and against each other at training.”

Recruited by Hawthorn as a project player at the end of 2008, Lowden made his long-awaited AFL debut against West Coast in Tasmania in Round 12 this season.

The 204cm, 102kg, big man kicked three goals in a dream debut, but was unable to add to his games tally because of the abundance of ruck options at Hawthorn, including Ben McEvoy, David Hale, Jarryd Roughead and Jon Ceglar.

“It was well documented how long it had taken me to debut. It was very exciting and I felt like I was able to go into the team and contribute and play my role. But with the strength of the Hawthorn talls, it was hard to keep my spot,” Lowden said.

“I went back to Box Hill in the VFL and thought I was able to play some good, consistent footy there. I kept my head up and tried to show strong leadership, which is something I’ve focused on getting into my game the last couple of years.

“I would’ve loved to have stayed in the team and played more games, but it was tough to break in and that’s just part of footy.”

Approaching the trade period, Lowden decided to explore his opportunities.

“I spoke to Hawthorn and the club was keen to keep me, but I had a chat to my manager and there was some interest from a few clubs,” he said.

“I was lucky enough that Adelaide was interested in me even though it came late in the trade period. I’m very grateful that the Crows have given me this opportunity.”

As well as being competitive in the ruck, the athletic Lowden is a capable forward.

He kicked 24 goals in 18 games for Box Hill this season, including two bags of four. Lowden is hopeful this versatility will be an asset at Adelaide.

“I’m someone who can play ruck and up forward. I think my strengths are being competitive and assertive in the ruck, but I can also go forward not just to rest, but to be active and mobile,” he said.

Lowden, who was in LA with Cheney when the trade went through, will arrive in Adelaide late this week. It will be his first visit to Adelaide.

“I’m excited by the opportunity to come to Adelaide even though I’ve never been there before, which I guess makes it even more exciting,” he said.

“I’m no stranger to moving. I lived in Sydney for 13 years before moving to country Victoria and then Melbourne. I like seeing new places, so it’ll be good. I can’t wait to get started.”