Adelaide captain Nathan van Berlo says his resurgent Crows are no longer relying on a couple of individuals and need to maintain the high-energy approach that delivered them pre-season success.

Last weekend’s NAB Cup title offers hope of a better AFL campaign after last year’s 14th place and paltry tally of seven wins, both franchise-low records.

Van Berlo said new Crows’ coach Brenton Sanderson had brought energy to the club.

“The group have really embraced all his philosophies that he’s been passing on to the group over the summer,” van Berlo told AAP.

“I guess the challenge now is for us to to take it into the season proper and maintain an enthusiastic and high-energy group for the full season.”

Van Berlo attributed the NAB Cup triumph to an even spread of contributions.

“We were playing consistent footy as a team, but we didn’t rely on one or two individuals,” van Berlo said.

“Last year in the midfield, we relied heavily on Scott Thompson to do the majority of the workload and Kurt Tippett up forward was getting every kick we had into the forward line.

“Whereas over the pre-season, we’ve seen a number of different avenues down forward.

“Also in the midfield, we’ve seen a lot of young guys picking up the rope and helping out Scotty, which means that we’ve become harder to match up on and play on as a team.”

Van Berlo said the NAB Cup was a good reward for his group’s efforts, but added they were under no illusion it guaranteed any success during the coming season.

“What it does give us though is confidence in the work we have been doing,” van Berlo said.

The 2011 season provided a tough initiation to the captaincy for van Berlo.

“My first year as captain last year was a challenge. I knew it was going to be one, but probably more challenging than I would have liked,” van Berlo said.

“But out of that, I learnt many valuable lessons.

“I believe it holds me in a better position this year to lead the footy club and I’ve got greater confidence in my playing group.”