Carlton ruckman Matthew Kreuzer says he has overcome the injury issues that severely reduced his impact last season and is ready to figure strongly in the Blues' NAB Cup campaign.

Kreuzer battled manfully last year to play 20 games with a season-long knee problem, along with hip and hamstring issues.

All of which conspired to affect his leap, speed and general mobility, and virtually robbed him of his rare ability to follow up his ruckwork at ground level and become an extra midfielder at stoppages. His kicking fluency, and efficiency, also suffered.

Kreuzer underwent post-season surgery to repair a partially torn meniscus in his left knee and was on restricted duties before Christmas.

Now, a noticeably bigger and stronger Kreuzer is excited to be finally injury-free and training fully again, without any strapping or discomfort. Everything he lost last year is slowly returning. His fitness is steadily improving and he's keen to play as many practice matches as possible before the Blues' round one clash with Richmond.

Significantly, the 23-year-old also has renewed confidence in his body to withstand the rigours of a full season.

This will hearten Blues fans, many of whom believe injury issues loom as the only barrier to Kreuzer achieving his destiny in the game.

Traditionally, young ruckmen take time to mature and become durable. Kreuzer's journey so far has both followed and separated from this well-worn path.

His five seasons in the AFL have been something of a rollercoaster ride.

Kreuzer's first two years were exceptional for a young ruckman in terms of both performance and durability. However, his past three seasons have not ended well, with injury either ending his campaign prematurely or – as was the case last year – preventing him from producing his best football.

In 2010, he suffered a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee that required a reconstruction (on the same knee that troubled him last year), ending his season after round 13, thus breaking a remarkable run of 56 consecutive appearances from debut.

In 2011, a foot injury sidelined him for the finals.

Then came the 2012 season, which was as trying for Kreuzer as it was for his club.

He is due some luck in 2013. 

They say the harder you work, the luckier you get – and Kreuzer is working harder than ever to be prepared for whatever challenges he might confront.

And that includes being mentally prepared. Though frustrated by his past injury woes, Kreuzer prefers to highlight the positives, regarding it all as "a great learning experience", particularly in that most challenging area of playing with pain.

"You don’t want to miss a game if you can, so you've just got to cope with it and find ways around it," he told AFL.com.au. 

"Some weeks you do this and other weeks you do that, and you work out what works best for you. I learnt a lot about how I've got to manage my body, so I'll take a lot of things from last year and put them in place this year.

"It was a tough year but I took a lot out of it. And it was like that for the whole club because we had a lot of injuries and had to play a few players out of position."

Kreuzer knows he too will have to improve his versatility. New coach Mick Malthouse wants him to become as comfortable and competent in attack as he is in the ruck, and the 88-gamer says he is trying to gain "a better understanding" of each role.

Such flexibility is crucial, particularly given the Blues have three fit ruckmen – the others being Robbie Warnock and Shaun Hampson. It's a luxury but it also presents a selection headache.

The trio have played together with mixed results in the past, but new midfield coach Rob Wiley believes the triple towers can forge a successful union. Kreuzer agrees.

"I'd like to think we could do it," he said. "Obviously it comes down to what Mick thinks is best for the team. But if we're all fit and in form, hopefully we can all get a game together."

Amid the debate, some healthy rivalry has developed among the Blues' big men.

"We get along really well together, us three big blokes, but there's definitely some competition between us," he said. 

"And it's good to have that competition because it pushes us to get better. In the end it helps everyone because we want to get better as individuals, and as a ruck group, and that helps the team."

It's natural to assume Kreuzer would have his sights set on reasserting himself as the Blues' No. 1 ruckman. He says he doesn’t.

"I've always been pretty easy about it," he insists. "The way I've always seen it is I just want to get a game and do my best in whatever role the coaches ask."

The Blues last year secured Kreuzer to a three-year contract extension. He is determined to repay their faith, hoping to improve in all areas of his game, particularly his ruckwork, marking, ground work and kicking.

He admits his kicking "wasn't the greatest" the last year. His knee injury was a valid excuse, although doesn’t volunteer it. Pressed on the issue, he leaves little doubt that his kicking will indeed improve.

"Last year it was just hard to find time to work on it because I was on a tight schedule as to how much (training) I could do during the week," he explains. "Hopefully this year I won’t have any of those problems and I can do every session. If that's what happens, I think my kicking will definitely improve, and everything else will too."