ADELAIDE defender Brodie Smith could feature in a finals-defining Showdown 45 after making a successful return to football on Saturday.

In his first game in 318 days since rupturing the ACL in his right knee in last year's qualifying final against Greater Western Sydney, the 26-year-old got heavily involved in the Crows' 16-point SANFL loss to Central District at Elizabeth Oval.

Smith had a team-high 25 disposals and eight marks, but most importantly, got plenty of run into his legs, playing about 80 per cent of game time.

He said he expected to play in the SANFL again next week before aiming for a possible AFL return in the crucial round 20 clash with Port Adelaide in a fortnight.

"It's good, I had long time in rehab and to get the first one out of the way, get back to SANFL footy and play with a few of the guys on the list that I haven't had a chance to play footy with, so really enjoyed it," Smith said.

"Blew up pretty early and blew up late again, so it was good to get that out of the way.

"Hopefully next week will be a bit smoother and get a bit more flow back into my game.

"I blew up a bit there, so I might need another one (in the SANFL), but the plan was always to get at least two under the belt, and then reassess from there.

"Happy to have another crack at (SANFL) and then put my hand up (for AFL selection)."

The huge ground – which is 178m long and 130m wide, compared to Adelaide Oval's 167m x 123m dimensions – provided Smith plenty of opportunity to create play as he's done during his 143-game AFL career.

Smith didn't take long to get involved, gathering the ball off the ground in the second minute of the game and bursting away from the pack with pace.

He played all but five minutes of the first quarter and spent the first seven minutes of the second term on the bench.

Smith remained busy in the second half as he gained confidence the longer the game went on.

"GPS-wise, what we set out to achieve, was pretty much spot on," Smith said.

"It was a good result and I was trying to stay out there as long as I could, ignore the runner a bit and keep playing footy.

"I was nervous, but not about my knee. I was just nervous about getting back out there and playing footy."

The Crows lost 7.13 (55) to 6.3 (39).

Midfielder Myles Poholke was also impressive with 23 disposals, while Ben Jarman booted three goals.