Season 2010

[hearts on fire]

Crows always seem to make the finals and don't think this year will be any different.

Crows to finish between 6-8.

[stan]

Crows always seem to make the finals and don't think this year will be any different.

Crows to finish between 6-8.

For me, 5 - 8. Only because I cant see them getting into the top 4 at the moment. Then again, I would not be that surprised if they did make the 4.

[AFLflyer]

crows will finish 7th or 8th. i see another barely successful year on the cards. They need more, then again so do alot of other clubs.

[FD88]

The early going will be good without setting the world on fire, but get ready for what we display after the mid-season break. The second half of 2010 will showcase the most attractive footy the AFC has played in its short history, this will include strong performances against the higher-ranked sides, and (unfortunately) the football public will jump on board in unison when in reality, it's more a precursor than anything else.

- Tippett will consolidate in 2010 after emerging last year, a 70 goal season and a spot on the AA shortlist is my bet.

- Dangerfield's proportion of time spent up forward versus in the midfield will switch from 09.

- Mackay to make the AA shortlist as a wingman.

- Taylor Walker, lock in him as this year's AFC supporter base lovechild. Lots of people are saying he'll return 40 goals or thereabouts, I'm thinking he'll be a bigger improver than Dangerfield and will get within 10 of Tippett for leading goal kicker honours. Kid is the real deal, we're very fortunate he fell into our laps.

- We won't see much of Davis.

- Vince will carry on from last year and handle a tag beautifully. The competition for our best and fairest will be tougher though, any of Bock, Tippett or Mackay could deny him. That said, Vince will be one of two AA Crows this year imo.

- Bock to settle straight back in at CHB and have another All-Australian year.

LADDER FINISH - 3rd. We'll nudge the grand final, but my gut is telling me we might be edged the week before. This is the first serious contention year with our new brigade and the beauty of it is, despite popular opinion to the contrary, we'll continue to trend up whatever our final result. Hugely positive year for the Crows this one, bank on it.

[Footy Smart]

The early going will be good without setting the world on fire, but get ready for what we display after the mid-season break. The second half of 2010 will showcase the most attractive footy the AFC has played in its short history, this will include strong performances against the higher-ranked sides, and (unfortunately) the football public will jump on board in unison when in reality, it's more a precursor than anything else.

- Tippett will consolidate in 2010 after emerging last year, a 70 goal season and a spot on the AA shortlist is my bet.

- Dangerfield's proportion of time spent up forward versus in the midfield will switch from 09.

- Mackay to make the AA shortlist as a wingman.

- Taylor Walker, lock in him as this year's AFC supporter base lovechild. Lots of people are saying he'll return 40 goals or thereabouts, I'm thinking he'll be a bigger improver than Dangerfield and will get within 10 of Tippett for leading goal kicker honours. Kid is the real deal, we're very fortunate he fell into our laps.

- We won't see much of Davis.

- Vince will carry on from last year and handle a tag beautifully. The competition for our best and fairest will be tougher though, any of Bock, Tippett or Mackay could deny him. That said, Vince will be one of two AA Crows this year imo.

- Bock to settle straight back in at CHB and have another All-Australian year.

LADDER FINISH - 3rd. We'll nudge the grand final, but my gut is telling me we might be edged the week before. This is the first serious contention year with our new brigade and the beauty of it is, despite popular opinion to the contrary, we'll continue to trend up whatever our final result. Hugely positive year for the Crows this one, bank on it.

I like your thinking and quality post FD

[Dirko]

Have a very good draw and anything below a top 4 finish would be seen as a failure.

[Sorry Dude]

Well said FD. I think one player that you missed out AA short list duties is Simon Goodwin. Injury free year should see him gathering quite a few possesions running out of the back half and imo will lead inside 50's for the league in 2010.

[fish]

Centrebet odds for the flag indicate that the bookies and punters reckon Adelaide will be nudging for a top four spot:

ST KILDA $3.80
GEELONG $4.20
WESTERN BULLDOGS $6.50
HAWTHORN $8.50
ADELAIDE $10.00
COLLINGWOOD $11.00
BRISBANE $14.00
CARLTON $21.00
SYDNEY $34.00
WEST COAST $34.00
ESSENDON $51.00
FREMANTLE $81.00
PORT ADELAIDE $81.00
NORTH MELBOURNE $126.00
RICHMOND $126.00
MELBOURNE $151.00

[carey]

abit of talk in here about being top4 im not sure the crows are as good as the cats, saints, dogs or collingwood so im not so sure about top4 but hey stranger things have happened

[Rik E Boy]

I reckon the Crows are as good as Collingwood and have a much better draw than the Pies. The key is getting off to a good start because the run home is a challenging one.

regards,

REB

[hearts on fire]

SNAPSHOT
Coach: Neil Craig
Captain: Simon Goodwin
Finished 2009: 5th (15 wins, nine losses)
Best and fairest: Bernie Vince
Leading goalkicker: Jason Porplyzia (57 goals)
Leading possession winner: Bernie Vince (597)

NEW PERSONNEL
On-field: Daniel Talia, Jack Gunston, Sam Shaw, James Craig, (NAB AFL Draft), Luke Thompson, Matthew Wright, Matthew Jaensch (NAB AFL Rookie Draft), Aidan Riley (NSW Scholarship Program)
Off-field: Nil

BEST 22
B: Andy Otten, Ben Rutten, Graham Johncock
HB: Simon Goodwin, Nathan Bock, Andrew McLeod
C: David Mackay, Scott Thompson, Patrick Dangerfield
HF: Jason Porplyzia, Trent Hentschel, Chris Knights
F: Brett Burton, Kurt Tippett, Taylor Walker
Foll: Ivan Maric, Bernie Vince, Tyson Edwards
I/C: Michael Doughty, Brad Moran, Nathan van Berlo, Scott Stevens

MOST IMPORTANT PLAYER
The Crows were quick to re-sign the imposing Kurt Tippett after his breakout season. Tippett kicked 55 goals last year, including seven against Essendon in round 11, to finish second in the club’s goalkicking. The 201cm, former basketballer provides his teammates with a strong target in attack and is also Adelaide’s best ruck option.

UP AND COMER
Patrick Dangerfield, who has played 23 career games, is no stranger to the AFL scene but appears destined for bigger things in 2010. The highly-rated teenager has completed his first full pre-season since arriving at West Lakes as a top-10 draft pick in 2007 and looks set for a greater midfield role this year.

NEEDS A BIG YEAR
Richard Douglas has all the makings of a modern-day small forward, but for whatever reason has struggled to find any consistency during his five-year stay at the club. He has added 3kg of muscle this pre-season and needs to command a spot in Adelaide’s best 22.

CHANGING TACK
The Crows implemented a faster, more attacking style of play last season and have continued to develop their ball movement patterns over the summer. Coach Neil Craig planned to use several players, like Andy Otten, Andrew McLeod and Tyson Edwards, in different roles this year but injuries will see these swaps put on the back burner for at least the early part of the season.

INJURY LIST
Bernie Vince (glute) - 1 week
Andrew McLeod (back) - 1 week
Brett Burton (knee) - 3 weeks
Jason Porplyzia (pelvis) - 3 weeks
Chris Knights (foot) - 3 weeks
James Sellar (hand) - 3 weeks
Nathan van Berlo (back) - indefinite
Brad Symes (knee) - indefinite
Brad Moran (knee) - indefinite
Brodie Martin (knee) - round 17
Andy Otten (knee) - season

WHAT THE CLUB SAYS
"The feeling of our playing group is that first of all we improve on where we were last year . . . we need to keep pushing forward, and our group has the belief now that we need to be able to challenge sides that are in the top four.” - coach Neil Craig

CRYSTAL BALL
The injury-ravaged Crows have a favourable draw in the opening 10 rounds of the season and they’re going to need it, as they attempt to restore a full-strength line-up. Adelaide has a tough finish to the year with games against reigning top-four sides Collingwood, St Kilda and the Western Bulldogs scheduled in the last month. The Crows’ pre-season form hasn’t been earth shattering, but their performances late last year suggest they’re capable of a top-four finish.

SEASON OPENER
March 28 v Fremantle at Subiaco Oval.

http://www.afl.com.au/news/newsarticle/ ... fault.aspx

[Zorro]

I reAckon the Crows are as good as Collingwood and have a much better draw than the Pies. The key is getting off to a good start because the run home is a challenging one.

regards,

REB

Agree as good as Collingwood, except when playing Collingwood....

[NFC]

The early going will be good without setting the world on fire, but get ready for what we display after the mid-season break. The second half of 2010 will showcase the most attractive footy the AFC has played in its short history, this will include strong performances against the higher-ranked sides, and (unfortunately) the football public will jump on board in unison when in reality, it's more a precursor than anything else.

- Tippett will consolidate in 2010 after emerging last year, a 70 goal season and a spot on the AA shortlist is my bet.

- Dangerfield's proportion of time spent up forward versus in the midfield will switch from 09.

- Mackay to make the AA shortlist as a wingman.

- Taylor Walker, lock in him as this year's AFC supporter base lovechild. Lots of people are saying he'll return 40 goals or thereabouts, I'm thinking he'll be a bigger improver than Dangerfield and will get within 10 of Tippett for leading goal kicker honours. Kid is the real deal, we're very fortunate he fell into our laps.

- We won't see much of Davis.

- Vince will carry on from last year and handle a tag beautifully. The competition for our best and fairest will be tougher though, any of Bock, Tippett or Mackay could deny him. That said, Vince will be one of two AA Crows this year imo.

- Bock to settle straight back in at CHB and have another All-Australian year.

LADDER FINISH - 3rd. We'll nudge the grand final, but my gut is telling me we might be edged the week before. This is the first serious contention year with our new brigade and the beauty of it is, despite popular opinion to the contrary, we'll continue to trend up whatever our final result. Hugely positive year for the Crows this one, bank on it.

Agree with everything else, expect this. Walker should play most of the year with Adelaide however I struggle to see him breaking 40 goals let alone going anywhere near Tip. He's still too lazy, drifts in and out of games and needs to take more contested marks at AFL level. I see him spending a few weeks with Norwood once again.

[Brucetiki]

The early going will be good without setting the world on fire, but get ready for what we display after the mid-season break. The second half of 2010 will showcase the most attractive footy the AFC has played in its short history, this will include strong performances against the higher-ranked sides, and (unfortunately) the football public will jump on board in unison when in reality, it's more a precursor than anything else.

- Tippett will consolidate in 2010 after emerging last year, a 70 goal season and a spot on the AA shortlist is my bet.

- Dangerfield's proportion of time spent up forward versus in the midfield will switch from 09.

- Mackay to make the AA shortlist as a wingman.

- Taylor Walker, lock in him as this year's AFC supporter base lovechild. Lots of people are saying he'll return 40 goals or thereabouts, I'm thinking he'll be a bigger improver than Dangerfield and will get within 10 of Tippett for leading goal kicker honours. Kid is the real deal, we're very fortunate he fell into our laps.

- We won't see much of Davis.

- Vince will carry on from last year and handle a tag beautifully. The competition for our best and fairest will be tougher though, any of Bock, Tippett or Mackay could deny him. That said, Vince will be one of two AA Crows this year imo.

- Bock to settle straight back in at CHB and have another All-Australian year.

LADDER FINISH - 3rd. We'll nudge the grand final, but my gut is telling me we might be edged the week before. This is the first serious contention year with our new brigade and the beauty of it is, despite popular opinion to the contrary, we'll continue to trend up whatever our final result. Hugely positive year for the Crows this one, bank on it.

Good summary. I also have them finishing 3-4 with St Kilda to slide into the 5-8 group

[Hank Moody]

Crows won't make the 8.

[SCD]

Crows won't make the 8.

and who do you propose from the bottom 8 kick them out?
They play the bottom 9 teams from last year up to round 11... that's enough to get them over the line by 1/2 way through the season IMO

[FD88]

Agree with everything else, expect this. Walker should play most of the year with Adelaide however I struggle to see him breaking 40 goals let alone going anywhere near Tip. He's still too lazy, drifts in and out of games and needs to take more contested marks at AFL level. I see him spending a few weeks with Norwood once again.

Can see where you're coming from, but I think the Walker running around in the early part of the year versus the Walker with another dozen games of AFL footy under the belt, and a heightened confidence in where he stands will be chalk and cheese. We know the club has been impressed with his improvement in areas of weakness over the pre season, everyone from fellow players during interviews to Craig himself has been quick to mention Walker when talking about improved players. If we're in agreement that our pre season campaign has been dicey and not indicative of how we'll go in the season proper, I don't see why we should think any differently where Walker is concerned.

Also I know my other post sounds excitable, but I'll stand by it. We should be bloody positive about this year because we have a strong list on the up and a good draw. I like that we basically run the gauntlet of flag contenders in the last few rounds of the season; that's great preparation and will give us a good idea of what our finals expectations should be. Just imagine the pressure if we were to somehow win all of them (not that this is likely).

[The Dark Knight]

I think they will make the 8 but who knows what will happen during the finals have they learnt yet from previous years? I guess we'll wait and see

[Brucetiki]

I think they will make the 8 but who knows what will happen during the finals have they learnt yet from previous years? I guess we'll wait and see

Last year they showed great improvement. For a side known for struggling in finals, they smashed Essendon. OK, Essendon wasn't a strong opponent but as they say in Finals it's a whole new ball game (look at how Centrals lift in finals). Then in the Semi, if it wasn't for a defensive brain fade in the dying seconds, they would have won that game.

[Rik E Boy]

I think they will make the 8 but who knows what will happen during the finals have they learnt yet from previous years? I guess we'll wait and see

Last year they showed great improvement. For a side known for struggling in finals, they smashed Essendon. OK, Essendon wasn't a strong opponent but as they say in Finals it's a whole new ball game (look at how Centrals lift in finals). Then in the Semi, if it wasn't for a defensive brain fade in the dying seconds, they would have won that game.

Come on. Essendon went into that final without a ruckman. Add to that the Bombers were one of the worst performed sides to qualify for finals action. Then the next week your coach 5hit himself and you lost a game you clearly should have won.

regards,

REB