THE NERVES are yet to kick in for Geelong superstar Patrick Dangerfield as he prepares for Friday night's blockbuster clash against his former club Adelaide.
Dangerfield flew out of Melbourne Airport on Thursday afternoon, greeted by a big media pack eager to know how the Cats midfielder would handle his return to Adelaide Oval.
The Brownlow Medal favourite said worrying about how his former fans and teammates treated him would not help him continue a rich vein of form on Friday night.
"We've still got another day before the game kicks off, and if you think about the game too early you can play it in your head," Dangerfield said.
"I'll control what I can control. I can't worry about fan reception or anything like that.
"I know as a team we're in that same mental headspace and we'll play our own brand of footy, which we know wins games."
Dangerfield was greeted by fans as he left Melbourne and will face the media again as he arrives in Adelaide before appearing on television on Thursday night.
The 26-year-old was keen to downplay the significance of his return to Adelaide and said he would not be rattled by extra attention on game day.
"I think teams are professional enough now to worry about the entire 18 on the field," he said.
"If you single out someone too often I think teams can exploit that.
"It's not something we really concern ourselves with."
Dangerfield's transition to his new club has been one of the most amicable in recent memory, but he conceded he would be returning to the ground he lit up as a Crow as an "outsider".
He said the Cats would be wary of an Adelaide midfield keen to respond after being embarrassed by the Western Bulldogs in round seven, losing the contested ball (163-142) and clearances (40-25).
"As an outsider now I'm looking forward to playing against them," Dangerfield said.
"I was a part of that group for a long time and they've been consistently good throughout this season.
"They didn't have a great week last week, but prior to that they've been playing some really good footy.
"We've got to be very wary of them."
