Western Australian recruit Marcus Adams says he’s ready to put in the work in his first AFL pre-season, in the hopes of taking the step from state to national football.

The West Perth-product arrived at the Bulldogs via the national draft, and despite being a mature-aged recruit Adams says he has realistic expectations heading into his first AFL season.

“I wouldn’t say there’s pressure to come in and play straight away, obviously I’d love to come in and have an impact immediately but that’s up to Bevo obviously.

“I’ve got to do all the work I can do to put myself in that position.”

Adams said despite the gruelling sessions on the training track, he’s learning to adapt to the expectations of an AFL footballer.

“Some of the training can be challenging but that’s part of the pre-season and that’s something we’ve got to take in our stride.”

Adams returned to the WAFL in 2014 after time away from the game due to personal circumstances.

The key defender said the time away helped him gain some perspective on the game.

“There were obviously circumstances surrounding Luke (Adams’ brother), and just issues away from footy that left me out of the system.

“It was good for the time away to balance all that out, and get the off-field stuff sorted out.

“It took a little while to pick up the feel of the game again… But obviously I’ve developed a lot as a person and the way I think about the game so I think that has helped a little bit too.”

Adams played outstanding football on return, and loomed as a draft prospect throughout the WAFL season.

Despite the senior experience, Adams is pragmatic about the work ahead of him.

“It’s the same as the VFL competition, you’ve got to be able to play VFL footy in order to get a game of AFL.

“But that doesn’t mean you’re going to step up and be a good AFL footballer, there’s obviously a lot more work to do.

“That’s my plan at the moment, to do as much work to try and improve and be ready for next year.”