Crows assistant coach Ben Hart says Adelaide's match committee has a tough decision to make ahead of Round 12, with ruckman Sam Jacobs and Reilly O’Brien both vying for the spot.

For nine years, Jacobs has carried the load in the ruck contest, but a knee injury he sustained in Round Two created a window of opportunity for understudy O’Brien in 2019.

“It’ll be a tough call, obviously Rob’s [O’Brien] been in really good form,” Hart told reporters on Monday.

“He’s been able to come in as the younger player and take on some of the better ruckman and do a great job for us.

“But Sauce has been around a long time and to have him in good form means it’s a tough decision.”

SANFL: Jacobs leads Crows to victory

Jacobs made his return to competitive football in style on the weekend, booting five goals and notching 28 hit-outs in the Crows’ SANFL win over North Adelaide.

“[Sam] had a really strong game in the ruck against the Roosters and he kicked five himself - I don’t know if he’s ever kicked five before,” Hart said.

“He’s pretty confident that he’s ready to go so we’ll have to access the game again because we were pretty comfortable with what Rob did as well against Max Gawn.

“It’ll be a discussion for match committee.”

SLOANE UPDATE: Scans confirm hamstring strain

Hart said the side would consider playing two ruckman.

“We could, but we tend to go down the path of one genuine ruckman and a second ruckman like JJ [Josh Jenkins] or Elliott [Himmelberg] when he was playing in that role,” Hart said.

“It’s not out of the question but I think we’d prefer the other way, but if we think its the best fit to win the game then it’s something we can certainly go to.”