Drew Petrie says he doesn’t expect Leigh Adams to change the way he approaches football, despite copping another heavy knock in the VFL.

Speaking to The Herald Sun’s Jay Clark, Petrie labelled Adams an “unsung hero”.

“It’s always the way he has played his footy, he just puts his head over the ball,” he said.

“So you can’t ask a guy to pull back, because his x-factor was his courage.”

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Adams is set to have an extended spell on the sidelines and will visit a neurosurgeon this week to assess scans on his head.

The gutsy small-forward was ruled out of the club’s finals’ campaign following a concussion late last year.

“I’ve got lots of empathy for Leigh,” Petrie added.

“He is one of those blokes who will just do his job for the side and put his head over the ball, which has almost been to his detriment because of the way he has copped so many hits the head and concussions over the years.

“He is one of the team men who you love having around the club and even in this time where he has “got some decisions to make, he certainly hasn’t made it about him.

“We hope he can continue his footy career for a couple more years at the Kangaroos.”

Adams has played 104 games since joining North as a rookie in 2006.

He played all 22 home and away matches last year, before missing the finals.