Rory Sloane’s first outing as co-captain has seen him pick up six coaches votes in Adelaide’s 32-point loss to Hawthorn on Saturday afternoon.

The 29-year-old, who only played 12 games last year in an injury interrupted season, started his 2019 campaign with a bang, collecting 36 touches, 22 contested possessions, 11 clearances and nine tackles.

It was his second-best disposal haul and third-best contested possession return of his career.

He also booted a goal in an all-round performance.

Fellow midfielder Matt Crouch received one vote for his 40-disposal outing, with an efficiency of 78 per cent, and a goal.

Hawthorn led the votes from Don Pyke and Alastair Clarkson, given to James Worpel (10), James Siciliy (six votes), Ben McEvoy (four), Jaeger O’Meara (two) and Jarman Impey (one).

Every round, the AFL coaches vote for the best players from their game. The coaches vote for five players, giving them a mark from 1-5. The maximum a player can score is 10.

The Shadforth AFLCA Player of the Year Award was won by Melbourne’s Max Gawn in 2018.