Coming back from injury, Liam Jones says he is glad to be back "kicking the footy" with his teammates.

The 198cm defender missed the last five games of the 2018 season after obtaining a medial ligament injury during a marking contest in the second quarter of the Blues’ clash with the Hawks.

Back at Ikon Park and preparing for next season, Jones said the recovery process had been successful.

“I started running just as the season finished and I got over my brace. Maybe for the last five or six weeks I’ve had no worries at all with my knee, so the rehab and the recovery has been really good,” Jones said.

“I have 100 percent confidence in it now.”

The first to fourth year players began their pre-season campaign last week. Despite not being due back until next week, a number of older Blues - including Jones - have arrived back at Ikon Park early.

He said he was impressed with what he seen since returning to train alongside his teammates.

“It’s been really exciting being back," he said.

"In the off-season you can get all the running and weights done by yourself but to have a really good decent kick is quite hard. To come back early and have a kick with the young fellas that are back already has been good fun.

“The vibe around the place has been really positive. Everyone has gone into the off-season really driven to improve their own game and then come back and help coach each other and improve each other.

“We’re training really hard and the way that a lot of guys have come back, it’s been impressive and really exciting."

View this post on Instagram

Back in business. #BoundByBlue

A post shared by Carlton Football Club (@carlton_fc) on

Carlton had a busy trade period this year, adding five new recruits to its list. The 27-year-old said the new additions were reason for excitement for both the team and its supporters.  

“We got some very good players in. It’s quite exciting," he said.

"I’ve only been here for two sessions now but the players we have got in, obviously McGovern, Fasolo, Newman and all these guys are really good AFL players so I’m excited to see them out on the track.

“They’re really going to boost us up and help us be really competitive next year.

Jones’ hard work intercepting down back placed him fifth across the league for one percenters per game in 2018.

He said he was enjoying his defensive role, but this pre-season presented the perfect opportunity to hone in on areas for improvement. 

“After playing about 30 games down in defence now I feel like I’ve experienced a lot of different things but I’ve still got a lot of learning to do. After missing the final five games of the season, I want to get a real big off-season under my belt,” he said.

“I want to come back really fit and strong and I’ve just been hanging out to have a kick of the football again now that I’m fit and with no injuries. I just want to improve every day in every way I can in education, get fitter, stronger and becoming the best player I can be.”