Adelaide yet to sign a back-up ruckman to support first-choice big man Reilly O’Brien following Sam Jacobs’ departure to GWS
As it stands, Adelaide will go into the 2020 season without an experienced ruckman to support Reilly O’Brien. O’Brien has been brilliant in the No. 1 role but what happens if he gets injured?
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Keep Reilly O’Brien away from black cats, walking under ladders and the number 13.
Because 12 months after being stuck behind Sam Jacobs in the Crows’ ruck pecking order, he is now not only the top man, he is arguably the most important player to Adelaide’s hopes of climbing the ladder in Matthew Nicks’ first season as coach.
After Jacobs’ departure to GWS, O’Brien is the only true ruckman with AFL experience left on Adelaide’s list.
And that will be the case entering the 2020 campaign unless the club opts to add another tall at the draft or during the delisted free agency period.
The Crows have recruited Billy Frampton from Port Adelaide but he is more of a forward who can support O’Brien, in the Josh Jenkins mould, not a first-choice tap man.
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Elliott Himmelberg, who is 198cm, is similar to Jenkins and Frampton, while rookie-listed Kieran Strachan is a genuine ruckman but still developing.
Paul Hunter was delisted last month after four seasons on the list without playing a match.
SA superstar Brodie Grundy is still at Collingwood – but he is a restricted free agent at the end of next season and will no doubt be on the Crows’ radar.
Jacobs was an ironman for Adelaide, featuring in 181 of a possible 185 games before being sidelined from round three to 21 this year, initially with a knee injury, then due to O’Brien’s form.
From 2013-18, Jacobs’ ability to shoulder the load and play through pain ensured the Crows’ ruck depth was rarely tested, even when it had ruckmen with AFL experience such as Angus Graham (2013-14) and Luke Lowden (2015-16) on the list.
At 24, O’Brien is in line to fill a similar role after becoming one of the surprise packets and shining lights of Adelaide’s 2019 season.
He had only played two AFL games – both in 2016 – when he came into the side for Jacobs before finishing with 18 matches.
His averages of 15.33 disposals, 4.2 tackles, 4.2 clearances and 33.2 hit-outs far exceeded expectations of an understudy.
But by season’s end, O’Brien began to tire – something Crows coach Don Pyke conceded when he dropped the big man for games against West Coast and Western Bulldogs.
Another pre-season and his 2019 experiences will no doubt help prepare O’Brien, who is excellent aerobically, for the rigours of his first campaign as the No. 1 ruckman.
But the danger for Adelaide as it seeks to respond to consecutive years without finals is another late-season burnout from O’Brien.
That is why, after not trading for one, it makes sense for the Crows to throw a lifeline in coming weeks to a delisted ruckman with AFL experience.
Signing a giant such as Archie Smith (ex-Brisbane), Ryan Abbott (Geelong) or Keegan Brooksby (Gold Coast/West Coast) will ensure they have support for O’Brien and a contingency plan if he goes down.
If they do not bring anyone else in, O’Brien will be the player the Crows can least afford to lose once the recruitment windows close, just like Jacobs has been previously.