Every team wants to be great, most will realistically settle for good. But it’s OK to be mediocre, or even bad, as long as there’s light at the end of the tunnel and you have a plan to get there.
Adelaide might know where they’re going, but it’s starting to look like they’re circling the block and rotating the map after being bullied off at the wrong exit two years ago.
Despite the disappointment of the past two seasons, the Crows aren’t a bad team. It might have been a dramatic drop-off after being the best team for most of 2017 but, despite falling short of finals, they went 12-10 with a percentage of 104 in 2018.
This year was worse – and perhaps even more disappointing – though they were again a decent side, winning ten games with a percentage of 101. Not a good side, but not a bad one.
The worry for Adelaide isn’t that they’re bad, it’s that they’re stuck. The team they put on the field for their final-round clash with the Bulldogs had an average age of 27 years and two months, making them the oldest team of the round. Interestingly, the Dogs were the round’s youngest at 23 years and ten months.
Those Crows had 14 players with at least 100 games of experience, and the eight players yet to notch triple digits included a pair of 27-year-olds in Hugh Greenwood and Alex Keath.
There’s nothing wrong with being an old team. Old teams tend to perform well – veterans are consistent and have usually stuck around as long as they have because they’re good at football.
(Photo by Daniel Kalisz/Getty Images)
The problem with being an old team is finding ways to improve. Eddie Betts, Taylor Walker, Tom Lynch, Sam Jacobs, Josh Jenkins and Bryce Gibbs are all past their best – in some cases, a fair way past it.
Rory Sloane falls into a similar age bracket, but I’m not yet ready to say his best footy is behind him.
Throw in Daniel Talia, the Crouches, Brodie Smith and Rory Atkins, and the Crows have a strong core of solid AFL players, but where does the improvement come from?
Reilly O’Brien showed promise this season, but couldn’t keep a meh Jacobs out of the side down the stretch. Tom Doedee should give them a boost when he returns from a knee injury, but he could be a straight swap for Alex Keath. Chayce Jones looks promising, and Darcy Fogarty has it.
The Carlton trade hasn’t turned out as they would have hoped, but picks 19 and eight for pick three is still a deal a lot of teams would do – they’ve ended up with the best piece in the trade.
(Photo by Daniel Kalisz/Getty Images)
Should Keath depart, as expected, he too will bring back someone or something of value.
This Adelaide core gave it a real shake, getting just about as close as you can to the ultimate prize, and then they got old – fast.
Now it’s time to be bold and regenerate their list and introduce players who can play a key role in their next premiership challenge.
That doesn’t mean dumping all of their veterans, but bringing back all of them would more than likely see them tread water in the middle of the table.
Perhaps off-field change will give the Crows a boost – Don Pyke’s days appear to be numbered. Regardless, they can’t afford to bring back the same core – some, not all, of their veterans must be moved on.
It’s time to move forward, and that means leaving some favourite sons behind.
Rowdy
Roar Rookie
Good on him. Maybe a bit of time to get himself right. I wonder if his ACL is not the full quid because lost a lotability to bauk, twist and spring. But things like Lever badgering was OTT.
Cracka
Roar Rookie
Big Tex just stepped down as captain......more events to come.
Freddy
Guest
....hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha....oh my giddy aunt....please have the residue at the bottom of your tea cup tested for hallucigens....collingwood has a similar record to 3 other finals sides against finals sides....and 2 teams have better records this year....yet they may be cooked....collingwood supporters seem to think they can ride out the crapshoot better than anybody else....WOW....
Stix
Guest
Tom Lynch, Taylor Walker, Charlie Cameron Mitch McGovern, Josh Jenkins, Eddie Betts One paced midfield got slaughtered in the grand final and now the stacked forward line is gone.
Boo
Guest
In theory pick 3 is better than pick 8 .The closest comparison might be Judd pick 3 Bartel pick 8 in the 2001 draft.Whoever Adelaide takes at 3 will have enormous scrutiny on there career.
Brendon the 1st
Roar Rookie
Betts is done Macca, kicked 12 against a hopeless suns this year and that's about it. He's lost his speed of the mark and a bit of lateral zip, coaching beckons I would think.
Macca
Roar Rookie
This is from the age Pete; While there is still debate occurring as to what on-field value he could provide next year to the emerging Blues, there is a view he would be a great mentor for the club's younger players and an asset in any off-field role post-career. Betts still has a close relationship with Shane O'Sullivan, who manages the Blues' Spirit of Carlton program, and the club is well aware of the respect and influence he carries among AFL players, with Richmond's Sydney Stack emphasising at the NAB Rising Star Awards how he looked up to Betts.
RT
Roar Rookie
Everything I represented as fact has been widely reported in mainstream media.
Ditto
Roar Rookie
Hey Macca, that hurts.
Ditto
Roar Rookie
Of all the players that are potentially on the cutting table, the only one I'd try hard to keep would be Keath, if only because he could hopefully keep Hartigan out of the side, he is terrible, to keep Hartigan and move Keath on is unconscionable. If he is traded I hope we get a player back, rather than just draft pick(s). I don't want him to go to the Western Bulldogs as although they have players that would suit, I don't think that they'd let any of them go and they probably wouldn't want to anyway. I hope he gets traded to Melbourne and we ask for Tom Sparrow in the deal, pick 27 in last year's draft, I think he might have been the player we would have drafted at pick 24 if GWS hadn't made an offer we couldn't refuse, he was gone by what became our next pick at 30. He's the type of player we need and he's a South Australian, so he'd probably be ok with the trade.
Macca
Roar Rookie
Pick any draft pick above 35 you want and if over the last decade more than 50% of that pick have been successful by any measure you think of I will agree. As for Thomas, if he kicked 30 goals this year as a small forward he would still be on the list, we have plenty of half bac flanks, we don't have anyone who can do what Betts could. If they threw in Gibbs it's a bonus.
Fairsuckofthesav
Roar Rookie
You're entitled to your own opinions but not your own facts.
PeteB
Roar Rookie
That’s a very selective use of stats. How about all the players after pick 39 and those taken in the rookie draft ? What about the number of 35 year olds who participate in winning a premiership which is the age Betts will be at the earliest time we get close ? More chance of a currently unknown Pick 39 contributing to our success than Betts who’s on the decline and has only two years maximum left at fairly minimal output.
Liam Clark
Roar Guru
The Crows definitely need to make some changes, but I'm not sure where they start. I feel Betts is on the way out with all these rumours and the fact he has been dropped for multiple games. They've also got to be looking at Tex, especially as a captain as he certainly has not been the best of influences at times
PeteB
Roar Rookie
We got rid of Thomas to give younger players opportunities but now we want to bring in Betts AND Gibbs ? Defies any logic.
Macca
Roar Rookie
The only thing Delusional is the idea the Crows would trade both of them for 39.
Macca
Roar Rookie
From the past 10 drafts only 3 players drafted at 39 have so far played more than 10 games, one was Michael Talia, who got to 31 being delisted, another is Josh Battle (26) and the third is Rhys Mathieson (46) who played just 9 games this year (his 4th on an AFL list). So yes there are diamonds to be found in the rough but probabilities would suggest we would get a bigger return from the unlikely trade of Gibbs and Betts for 39 than going to the draft.
Jack A
Guest
He may be gone, and you may be right, but we are speculating. We’ve probably both seen players going through a down patch by their high standards, only for them to play on and make significant contributions. JK may be one of them, and he may not, the club and JK can decide that. Simmo recently said that JK has been doing lots right while acknowledging that his goal output has been down. I’ve seen a few games in the last month where JK had distance on his opponent and he was in the best position to receive but the incoming player chose another option. He’s missed a few shots that he would normally nail so he’s had chances but missed them. JK is still taking significant pressure off of Darling, Allen and Waterman, how much weight the club places on that I’m not sure, but it would be a factor. Irrespective, I hope that he doesn’t play on too long as he deserves to go out in style, ideally with a little bit left in the tank. You do like to provoke, lol.
Ditto
Roar Rookie
Hi Maxine, you may be right.
Yattuzzi
Roar Rookie
Gifted ground but they are not up to it.