Adelaide coach Don Pyke full of praise for his team’s fighting five-point win over the Lions
THE Crows have satisfied coach Don Pyke with a fighting five-point win over in-form Brisbane at the Gabba to keep their finals ambition on track.
ADELAIDE coach Don Pyke could take heart in the club’s pressure in the win against Brisbane at the Gabba.
He could talk up the four goals from Hugh Greenwood, whom Lions coach Chris Fagan conceded had got under his guard after Bribane put much of their time into Josh Jenkins and Eddie Betts.
And he could be chuffed with the consistent efforts from Matt Crouch and Rory Laird, who continue to play elite football week after week.
But the first thing that came to mind when Pyke assessed the game was the fight in the Crows.
They hung on against a Lions side that was on a hot three-game winning streak, full of confidence with their younger players having breakout seasons and before a home audience that was willing Brisbane home.
What compounded the situation was that Adelaide had two players out for all of the last quarter with Lachlan Murphy and Tom Doedee sitting on the bench after being ruled out under the concussion protocol.
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The will to win and the ability to fight it out was the standout to Pyke.
“From our viewpoint, we needed four points,” Pyke said. “I was really pleased with the way the guys fought on.
“Especially in the last quarter, when we were two men down - both ‘Doedes’ and ‘Murph’ off with concussion.
“We were sort of spinning them and trying to keep as muc fresh legs on the ground as we could against a side that was coming at us.
“It was good to get over the line.
“It certainly had an influence... you could see the guys coming off - they were blowing.
“The game was a high-intensity game; it was fairly quick on the transition and the way both teams were trying to move the ball was forcing a high level of running.”
Both Murphy, who also appeared to have a broken nose, and Doedee will be assessed during the week.
But Adelaide will welcome back captain Taylor Walker, who missed the Brisbane match to suspension.