Do Adelaide Crows Josh Jenkins, Bryce Gibbs and even Darcy Fogarty have a case for senior selection without playing SANFL on the weekend?
It’s 8.11pm on Saturday night and three Crows on a combined salary estimated at $1.5 million a year are running around a dimly lit and empty Adelaide Oval in the rain. Exclusive photos from the training session in this week’s Monday Moment column.
Reece Homfray
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It’s 8.11pm on Saturday night and three Crows on a combined salary estimated at $1.5 million a year are running across a dimly lit and empty Adelaide Oval in the rain.
While their teammates are showering inside after losing to West Coast, Josh Jenkins, Bryce Gibbs and Darcy Fogarty are sprinting from wing to wing. The only time a player wants to be on the oval in an empty stadium an hour after the game is on grand final day and this is far from it.
The crowd has gone, it’s cold and they’re wearing tights. The rain is now so hard you can barely see them when they sprint to the eastern side.
To their left, two groundsmen are washing the painted Sir Doug Nicholls Round logo off the grass and are seemingly oblivious to what’s going on beside them.
Stride for stride on the command of a fitness coach holding a stopwatch, the trio with a combined six years to run on their contracts — they are all signed to 2021 — are training at night because they aren’t in the AFL team and the SANFL side had the bye.
They entered the oval just before 8pm — after the fans had left following a kick-and-catch to take their minds off a 45-point capitulation in a quarter-and-a-half to the Eagles.
Only the fans can’t blame Jenkins and Gibbs this time. And they certainly can’t blame Fogarty who was a first-round draft pick two years ago and is yet to get a game this season as he tries to work out whether he’s a forward or a defender.
He’s a forward, for the record but is behind Tom Lynch, Taylor Walker and Elliott Himmelberg in the pecking order.
Or can they? If Gibbs and Jenkins were in better form or were doing what coach Don Pyke wanted, then perhaps they’d be in the side already?
To the outsider, the Gibbs axing — his second this season — was puzzling. He had 22 disposals and two goals against Brisbane last week when the Crows lost by a point.
“But he has got some areas of his game that he knows he needs to work on,” Pyke said without going into detail during the week.
So we are left to guess. Was it his GPS running data? His defensive actions? One-percenters? Was he standing on the wrong side of an opponent at stoppages?
Whatever the reason, Gibbs, Jenkins and Fogarty continued to run for half an hour in between heavy showers of rain. Across the ground, up and back, pausing occasionally to look at their watches, stretch or have a drink.
At 8.28pm, they jogged a slow lap to warm down and made their way back down the race and inside the rooms.
What else can they do when there is no game for them to play?
“Well we can’t do anything about it, that’s the reality,” Pyke said.
“Guys’ form from the previous week will be what will hold them into selection, plus their training form.
“(Some) guys had a run around this morning, did a session and will train during the week and we’ll make those decisions at selection as we need to.”
So does Pyke need to see Jenkins and Gibbs, in particular, play in another SANFL game before they are considered for a senior recall?
“Not necessarily, no,” Pyke said.
Jenkins kicked six goals last start and his replacement, Elliott Himmelberg, has kicked one in his past two games at AFL level and struggled.
“We’ll review that in terms of what’s the most effective forward structure and personnel going forward,” Pyke said of the forward line.
Selection has been the source of constant intrigue at Adelaide this season and it’s not just the three running in the rain late on Saturday who are being talked about.
Tom Lynch, Matt Crouch, David Mackay, Sam Jacobs and Richard Douglas are all coming back and some will be considered to play Melbourne in Darwin this weekend.
Wingman Rory Atkins describes the situation as “healthy”.
“I feel like that’s a healthy thing for a football club,” Atkins said post-match.
“If we’ve got our whole list to pick from then pressure’s on for spots and you’ve got to perform to the level.
“That’s a good thing, and we know there are senior players who’ve played a lot of football and they’re doing everything they can to get in and stay in the 22.
“I feel like that’s healthy for a playing list. I don’t think it puts anyone on edge anymore, I reckon it brings the most out of players to play their best footy.
“The thing is we know what we’re going to get from them … and the coach has obviously spoken to them and come up with some areas of improvement in their game and that’s what they’re working on.”
So, after Round 10, both Adelaide and Port sit 5-5, and after disappointing losses on Saturday both coaches were asked ‘Where are you at?’
Don Pyke: “The ladder is a reflection of how you played, and we don’t hide from that.
“We don’t hide from that, that’s where we’re at, 5-5, and we have Melbourne in Darwin next week and the challenges keep coming.
“The last two weeks, we’ve had games of footy that we’ve been in but we walk away with nothing.”
Ken Hinkley: “We’re exactly what the ladder says. I spoke to Clarko (Alastair Clarkson) straight after the game and to get a read on the competition is really difficult. “You’ve got to be up and about for every game … so we learn as we go.”
GAME NOTES
TAKE your chances, Port. The Power’s starts have been a problem this season and on Saturday they had five genuine chances to kick a goal or, at the very least score, in the first 15 minutes. Sam Gray’s snap, Robbie Gray’s set shot, Billy Frampton’s dropped mark and Connor Rozee’s snap around his body. Instead, they went to quarter-time trailing 4.1 to 0.0.
THEY needed to be more physical. Early in the second quarter, Hawthorn had more than doubled the Power’s tackle count and both Frampton and Dougal Howard had a chance to run through their opponent — legally and fairly — but either hesitated or were ball-watching and went in with an arm instead.
I LOVED the gang tackle on Chad Wingard in the first three minutes but I loved the way Hawthorn flew the flag for him even more. It cost him a 50m penalty but Shaun Burgoyne’s decision to remonstrate with Zak Butters sent a message to Port after Wingard had copped a Westhoff fend-off to the face and high tackle from Tom Rockliff early on.
PETER Ladhams might not be in the team next week but he will be on the primary list next year. Port either has to delist or upgrade him at season’s end and he has shown enough in the first half of this year to make that call for them. He only had 13 disposals and nine hit-outs on debut but was clean and creative with the footy. “He’s got good follow up for a 202cm ruckman,” Lions great Jonathan Brown said.
IF YOU’RE looking for a positive, then it’s Matthew Broadbent. He had 28 touches against the Hawks after 22 and 22 in his previous two games, which was 647 days since his last. He and Darcy Byrne-Jones were very good.
MR ONE PER CENTER
Who are the unsung heroes of SA footy?
The players who have an impact on the game without hitting the stats sheet? Champion Data records one-percenters by tallying spoils, knock-ons, shepherds and smothers every game. Here’s the leaderboard from Port Adelaide and Adelaide after Round 10:
84: Dougal Howard (Power)
84: Daniel Talia (Crows)
69: Tom Clurey (Power)
56: Alex Keath (Crows)
54: Jake Kelly (Crows)
45: Paddy Ryder (Power)
45: Tom Jonas (Power)
42: Dan Houston (Power)
40: Kyle Hartigan (Crows)
SUPERCOACH TOP 10
FOR the second week in a row, Adelaide’s Rory Sloane has topped the SuperCoach scoring in SA. And he did it after being held to just 10 touches in the first half by West Coast tagger Mark Hutchings.
1. Rory Sloane (Adel) 140
2. Cam Ellis-Yolmen (Adel) 134
3. Darcy Byrne-Jones (Port) 115
4. Hugh Greenwod (Adel) 112
5. Xavier Duursma (Port) 108
6. Jake Kelly (Adel) 107
7. Matthew Broadbent (Port) 99
8. Dan Houston (Port) 98
9. Rory Laird (Adel) 96
10. Tom Jonas (Port) 95
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
We review the game and I expect they’ll review the game as well. The game is difficult to umpire, we accept that, so I’m sure they’ll review that and decide whether decisions are right or wrong.
— Don Pyke on the umpiring in Saturday night’s loss to West Coast (the free kick count was 9-2 against in the third quarter).
TIPS
An early look at Round 11:
No spike for North against RICHMOND, COLLINGWOOD over Fremantle, GWS over the Suns, CATS to beat Sydney and the HAWKS to upset the Lions at the Gabba. ADELAIDE to exact some top end revenge on the Dees, PORT over St Kilda in China, ESSENDON over Carlton and WEST COAST over the Dogs. LAST WEEK: 6
RUNNING TOTAL: 57
POWER RANKINGS
1. GEELONG (9-1)
Another step closer to 10-1 but is Gary Ablett under some sort of pressure at home to get a weekend off?
2. RICHMOND (7-3)
The Tigers have won six of their last seven and this mid-season patch should lock them in for a top-four finish.
3. COLLINGWOOD (8-2)
Pushed all the way by Sydney at the SCG and Brodie Grundy’s performance, after his ‘go home’ comments last week might have added another zero to his asking price.
4. GWS (7-3)
Matt de Boer was all over Clayton Oliver (17 touches) and Cameron and Himmelberg kicked eight goals between them.
5. WEST COAST (7-3)
Huge win for their confidence and a warning to the competition with Nic Nat on the way back, they’re nearing full strength.
6. BRISBANE (6-4)
Heartbreak for Brisbane who didn’t deserve to lose that after the siren. How good was their defence under siege in the last term.
7. HAWTHORN (5-5)
Important win to keep them in the hunt for 5-5 looks a lot better than 4-6.
8. ADELAIDE (5-5)
Total capitulation from 33 points up they were unable to stop momentum and hit back. Did however like Gallucci and Murphy’s pressure and Milera forward is a nice card to have up your sleeve.
9. ST KILDA (5-5)
Kept their finals hopes alive by finding something when they needed to against the Blues.
10. PORT ADELAIDE (5-5)
That was the type of 50/50 game Port really needed to win to assure a return to the finals, and now they go to China under pressure with a new opponent in St Kilda.
11. FREMANTLE (5-5)
Michael Walters the hero with the goal and then behind after the siren but how about Brad Hill’s smother on the wing?
12. WESTERN BULLDOGS (4-6)
Always up against it when North and Brad Scott parted company.
13. ESSENDON (4-6)
It doesn’t help kicking 6.14 but they’re not in Richmond’s class.
14. GOLD COAST (3-7)
At three-quarter-time they were only two points down on the now 9-1 Cats so I’d take that as a win if I was a Suns supporter.
15. SYDNEY (3-7)
Credit to the Swans. At 6-1 they could have dropped their bundle but two gritty wins then a fighting loss to the Pies is impressive.
16. NORTH MELBOURNE (3-7)
Of course they were going to do it for the departing coach to send Brad Scott out a winner.
17. MELBOURNE (3-7)
The final margin (26 points) against GWS flattered the Dees. One goal in a half tells the true story.
18. CARLTON (1-9)
The 93-point Giants loss last week was bigger but the third-quarter fadeout against St Kilda was just as deflating.
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