SARAH Allan holds an AFLW record she's not too proud of, but it's one she hopes might end in career game No.100 this week.

Allan is yet to kick a goal at the level, making her the most experienced player yet to record a major in the AFLW. And she is hyper-aware of that fact.

"I was actually drafted as a forward, so it's actually even worse when you think about it," Allan said on the W Daily podcast.

"I got one game and got dropped, and then came back as a second ruck, and then second year back to defence. So, I was a failed forward very early in my career."

Allan's defensive partner Chelsea Biddell followed a similar path – drafted as a forward, found her feet in defence – and together they've formed an ominous wall behind the play.

"She just got to kick a few goals before she got sent back," Allan laughed.

"But yeah, we're trying to sneak up and hopefully get a handball receive or something like that. But definitely, with the new game style you see a lot more looks up the ground."

Her debut was Adelaide's very first AFLW game, in which it beat Greater Western Sydney by 36 points. Allan had five touches that day, and no goals. But the shift to defence by 2018 proved a masterstroke for both Allan and the Crows.

Since that unceremonious start, she has been named All-Australian three times, won three flags, and spent two years as the club's co-captain alongside fellow inaugural Crow Ebony Marinoff.

This year she chose to adjust how she leads by opting out of an official leadership role, leaving Marinoff as the standalone captain. She is determined to avoid terminology around stepping away, or stepping down from the role, because she is still leading, just without the captaincy tag.

"I don't want to say it's like a burden,"Allan said of the captaincy.

"I realised I had been (in the leadership group) for eight years, which is crazy. I think because I got into it so young, I didn't even realise that I had been going to leadership meetings, an extra hour every week, you're dealing with all the off-field stuff from a young age, and I realised that I actually hadn't had a lot of seasons where I wasn't in leadership.

"When you get older, you just want to enjoy your footy, and I think for me, it was time to let someone else step into that position, and it does create new opportunities for the next player to start their journey … I might grab a younger player, and if they're interested in doing more clips, now I can use that hour I was in (a) leadership meeting to run through clips with some of the younger defenders and stuff like that.

"So, it's not necessarily stepping back and not doing anything, it's more 'How I can use my energy more to help the younger girls in the team' in a different aspect."

Externally Allan is seen as calm and quiet, somewhat in contrast to the exuberant, energetic style of Marinoff. That's why they led so well together. But there is a bright, funny personality bubbling away there, under the perceived introversion.

"I'm probably just not the sort of 'out there' personality, like media sort of personality, just because it's in my nature to be that behind-the-scenes type of person. You know, to come from the country, coastal area, so I prefer to do those behind-the-scenes sacrificial stuff," Allan explained.

Allan is quick to laugh, quick to praise teammates, but also throws quips in here and there. And she is obsessed with earning frequent flyer points.

"I'm a big collector of Velocity Points," Allan said.

"Everyone hates when I start talking about it because I just go on about my points and saving up different points, different hacks. I'm one of those people.

"And the younger girls in the team sort of look at me like I'm a bit of a weirdo. But once you start paying for your flights and holidays with it, they'll understand in the future."

It means that not only is she keen on breaking her goalless streak, but flying for Mark of the Year, given the prize is a stack of those points.

"Manifest it. Put it out there," Allan said.