When Josh Jenkins set off from the wing and took the first of two running bounces at Etihad Stadium on Sunday, people watching the inexperienced Crow for only the second time could’ve been forgiven for thinking he’d been swept up in the momentum of the match and, perhaps, slightly overestimated the limitations of a 197cm, 94kg, ruckman.

But the former Essendon rookie knew exactly what he was doing.

Targeted by Adelaide in trade week last year, Jenkins boasts athleticism that belies his size. The 23-year-old possesses a rare combination of speed, power and size, making him one of the most natural athletes at West Lakes and ideally suited to the demands of the modern game.

At the Victorian state screening session in 2010, Jenkins recorded a time of 2.91 seconds in the 20m sprint - a time that would’ve seen ranked him in the top 10 at the Draft Combine. The record, held by Gold Coast defender Joel Wilkinson, is 2.75 seconds.

Crows strength and conditioning coach Nick Poulos said there was little chance of a Blues opponent catching Jenkins when he bolted towards the goals at the Lockett end in the third quarter.

“Josh’s speed for his size is almost freakish. Not many opposition clubs or people watching our games would know how fast he is,” Poulos told afc.com.au.

“In an open-field situation opposition players would be thinking, ‘I can run this guy down’, but he’s pretty hard to catch once he gets a full-head of steam up and he's hard to tackle too.

"He’s in the top-10 fastest guys at the Club over 10m and 40m, so for a big guy he has a lot of momentum. You don’t find many 100kg guys that can run as fast as Josh can.”

Jenkins has also made upper and lower-body strength a focus since switching to Adelaide, ranking equal-first alongside Jason Porplyzia in the bench-press test.

A keen footballer and basketballer in his teenage years, Jenkins walked away from pre-season training with the Bendigo Pioneers to pursue a career with the round ball in his final year of high school.

He was included in the Townsville Crocs development squad, but after a few seasons was reassigned to Mount Gambier in the SEABL and, no longer enjoying his basketball, decided to make the switch back to football.

He made a comeback with Lake Boga in the Central Murray Football League and played one reserves game for Frankston. It was enough for the Bombers to offer him a place on their rookie list for 2011.

He spent his first year in the AFL system playing for Essendon’s VFL affiliate. He was unable break through for a senior game with the Bombers, but attracted attention from several rival clubs in trade week.

In the end, Adelaide won out, securing his services in a last-minute deal.

Despite having given up basketball, Jenkins showed he'd preserved his skills, taking one left and one right-hand bounce in the lead-up to his brilliant running goal.

He also displayed skills on both feet, snapping a left-foot goal from the boundary line in the second quarter.

Coach Brenton Sanderson said he was excited by the competitive big man’s potential.

“Josh is one that’s going to continue to improve,” Sanderson said.

“He’s got natural talent, but he’s very raw. We’ll keep working with him and I’m sure we’re going to have a very good player for the Club long term.”