ADELAIDE star forward Josh Jenkins has revealed he was “completely shot” before a ball was even bounced in last year’s capitulation to Richmond.

Despite being clearly the best side all year, Don Pyke’s side failed when it mattered most, coughing up a two-goal quarter-time lead to lose by 48 points on the game’s biggest stage.

Jenkins didn’t fire a shot in the 2017 grand final, touching the ball just seven times and finishing without a goal after kicking 45 for the season.

The 29-year-old said the magnitude of the week got the better of him.

“I was completely shot already. At the start of the week I was like where is all the fanfare? This is just a really normal week,” Jenkins said on AFL 360 on Tuesday night.

“Then we had our open training. Then you arrive into Melbourne and it hits you like a storm. There’s cameras everywhere and it is really busy and the hotel is really busy and there’s security everywhere.

“We took the mantra of let’s enjoy it, we might not get here again. By the time the game came around I was completely spent; I had just spun my wheels all week, hoping that things were going to go well and just waiting for everything to happen.

“By the time I ran out there I was completely shot, I couldn’t run from here to 10 metres away because emotionally I’d spent all my energy. I’ve seen parts of the game and I think to myself, ‘just run, you’re not moving’.”

While Jenkins is hoping he gets a chance to redeem himself down the track, he believes the West Coast players who were stung in 2015 will be much better prepared this time around.

“It’s just a life learning,” Jenkins added.

“It’s a unique experience. Not every player gets to go through it and that’s why the value of the guys who played for West Coast in 2015; those guys are invaluable because they’ve been through it.

“My greatest lesson is for next time — if there is a next time — don’t get caught up in, ‘jeez, I hope I play well, I hope we get to hold up that cup’. Just continue to do the things you did for the 24 weeks building into it.

“You can’t get that experience unless you go through it.”