MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - JULY 27: Patrick Cripps of the Blues in action during the 2019 AFL round 19 match between the Carlton Blues and the Adelaide Crows at Melbourne Cricket Ground on July 27, 2019 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

Carlton co-captain Patrick Cripps will take part in a full pre-season, despite spending four months of his off-season in rehabilitation.

Cripps underwent a shoulder reconstruction last week to resolve shoulder issues that hampered his 2020 campaign.

Cripps still played every game in 2020, despite three incidents of shoulder instability.

"He has had three minor instability episodes throughout the course of the season, every time he has recovered 100 per cent. His strength has been 100 per cent going into the next game," Carlton's director of high-performance Andrew Russell said. 

"He will likely have 4-6 weeks of no running: he'll get back, he'll have a really good running preparation and we expect him to have a full pre-season on the track and be available for round one."