CHRISTIAN Salem says he’s been seeking the advice of more experienced teammates in the lead-up to his first Queen’s Birthday clash against Collingwood at the MCG on Monday.

The young-gun who impressed against Port Adelaide at TIO Traeger Park Oval last Saturday with two goals and 16 touches – in just his fifth AFL match – said he was itching to play in the blockbuster.

“[I’m] very excited. [I’ve been] speaking to a few of the boys about the last few years and they’re all up and about for this one,” Salem told Dee TV.

“I’ll put in a big week and prepare the same and it’s just another game, but it’s got that added touch to it, so we’ll see how we go.”

Salem said he had relished the opportunity to play two full matches, after starting his AFL life as a substitute.

“The first three weeks were as a sub, so it was a bit hard coming on for a quarter – if that. The last two weeks have been good from a development point of view – last week was my first full game and I felt a bit lost at times,” he said.

“I was wrecked by the second quarter, but after that, you get that second wind and you feel good. It’s good to back up a performance last week against Port [Adelaide].

“It’s good to get that consistency going – I’ve got to keep it up and we’ll see how we go this week. [I’ll aim for] a big week on the track and get ready for Collingwood.”

Salem’s effort against the Power brought the red and blue faithful plenty of delight – particularly his classy gather and pass to a running Rohan Bail. His talent is already showing through at the highest level and he said he was adapting to it well. 

“I feel pretty comfortable. I look at it as another game and the pace is a lot quicker, so it’ll take time to get used to,” he said.

“I feel like I’m used to it already.”

Salem said Paul Roos and the rest of the coaching staff had simply told him to play his role this year. But in terms of how he will be managed for the rest of the season, Salem said it was a wait and see approach.

“With the younger guys, it’s more [about] one week at a time,” he said.

“The AFL is a big workload, so we’ve got to see how we pull up after each game and how we go on the track, so we haven’t really put in a long term plan – it’s more week to week.

“I pulled up fine last week, so I’m feeling good and we’ll see how we go.”