Adelaide Round 1 AFL news: James Rowe and Sam Berry to debut as Crows overlook Darcy Fogarty and Chayce Jones
Despite a standout summer on the track, Crow Darcy Fogarty has been overlooked for Saturday’s clash with the Cats. And a recruit is line to be the sub. See the full team.
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Ex-Brisbane utility Mitch Hinge is in line to be used as the Crows’ medical sub against Geelong after being part of the main squad’s training session on Friday, only to be named as an emergency.
Teammate Luke Brown would not give what Hinge’s role would be in the season-opener versus the Cats when he spoke at a press conference, several hours before the teams were revealed.
But Brown said Hinge was very versatile and had impressed in his short time at West Lakes.
“He didn’t get the opportunities he maybe deserved at Brisbane, who are playing good football,” Brown said.
“He’s come in and played our way straight away and he’s actually really vocal as well, and becoming a good leader.”
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Adelaide has overlooked Darcy Fogarty for the Round 1 clash, as the club plans to go small in attack.
Fogarty was talked up by teammates over summer after trimming down and shedding a few seconds off his personal-best in the 2km time trial.
But the 2017 No. 12 pick had minimal influence in the two pre-season games against Port Adelaide, including 0.1 and six disposals in the second match a fortnight ago.
Instead of being on Adelaide Oval, Fogarty, who is out of contract at season’s end, will get to push his case for a recall when the Crows’ reserves take on Woodville-West Torrens in a SANFL trial at Thebarton on Saturday morning.
Elliott Himmelberg and Riley Thilthorpe will also feature in that match, leaving ex-captain Taylor Walker and Billy Frampton to front two-prong tall forward line against Geelong.
Coach Matthew Nicks said on Thursday the club’s toughest selection decisions involved the forward line as it weighed up “what sort of pressure we needed ... there’s always the balance between competing in the air and also bringing the heat on the ground”.
The result appears to be playing only two key forwards, alongside Shane McAdam (183cm), debutant James Rowe (173cm), Lachlan Murphy (175cm) and Ned McHenry (178cm).
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Adelaide defender Luke Brown said Walker and Frampton were performing better than Fogarty but he backed the 21-year-old to break into the side soon.
“Fog will just have to fight his way back in,” Brown said.
“He’s a talented player but Bill’s performed and he deserves his opportunity.
“(Fogarty) is really important to our team and our future but at the same time we’ve got a lot of key forwards who are fighting for those positions.”
Chayce Jones and David Mackay are also playing in the SANFL trial, while Jackson Hately (adductor) is being managed and will not feature this weekend.
ADELAIDE v GEELONG
Saturday, 4.05pm (local time) at Adelaide Oval
CROWS
B: A.McPherson, J.Butts, L.Brown
HB: W.Hamill, B.Smith, J.Kelly
C: L.Sholl, R.Sloane, P.Seedsman
HF: J.Rowe, B.Frampton, N.McHenry
F: S.McAdam, T.Walker, L.Murphy
FOLL: R.O’Brien, R.Laird, B.Keays
I/C: T.Lynch, S.Berry, H.Schoenberg, T.Doedee
EMG: D.Fogarty, C.Jones, M.Hinge, D.Mackay
NEW: S.Berry
CATS
B: L.Henderson, M.Blicavs, J.Bews
HB: T.Atkins, T.Stewart, J.Kolodjashnij
C: I.Smith, J.Selwood, S.Menegola
HF: S.Higgins, G.Rohan, C.Guthrie
F: G.Miers, T.Hawkins, L.Dahlhaus
FOLL: R.Stanley, B.Parfitt, P.Dangerfield
I/C: M.O’Connor, Z.Guthrie, J.Clark, J.Jenkins
EMER: C.Constable, F.Evans, J.Henry, Q.Narkle
Crows to blood two debutants in Round 1
Adelaide has named two debutants for its season-opener against Geelong but will be without star midfielder Matt Crouch, who is out indefinitely with a hip and groin issue.
Mature-age goalsneak James Rowe will follow in the footsteps of his dad, Stephen, when he takes to Adelaide Oval on Saturday, while hard-nosed midfielder Sam Berry gets an opportunity in Crouch’s absence.
Crouch’s problems have lingered since off-season hip surgery.
Nicks said the 2017 best-and-fairest winner had pulled up sore after Thursday’s training session and he lacked power on the track.
“From more of a medium, longer-term view, we didn’t want to take a chance with him this weekend,” Nicks said.
“We just want to make sure that if we are going to get him in we are going to see out the season or at least manage it throughout the season.
“It’s a tough one to put a time on.”
Berry has impressed since arriving at West Lakes via pick No.28 in last year’s draft.
Nicks said he had trained really well, fit into the club’s culture and went hard at the footy.
“He deserves his opportunity,” he said of the Victorian.
“He played two weeks ago in the SANFL and was a standout at that level.
“He got a small opportunity on the weekend against a really high quality team (Port Adelaide) and we were under the pump a little, and we thought he showed enough.”
Rowe won the SANFL’s Ken Farmer Medal as leading goalkicker last year and played in the Eagles’ premiership.
His father featured 29 times for the Crows.
“I think as a coaching group we were reasonably confident he would push for Round 1,” Nicks said.
“Probably a month or so ago, we started to set our forward line around that.”
The Crows’ highest ever draft pick, Riley Thilthorpe, will have to wait to debut.
Nicks said the key forward/ruckman was considered but the team needed to balance experience and youth.
“He’s a really exciting part of our future, we just want to make sure we don’t rush it,” he said.
Nicks said defenders Tom Doedee (groin) and Jordon Butts (ankle) were available but new rookie Nick Murray (ankle) would miss the match.
Doedee and Butts will provide a much-needed boost for the Crows’ backline against a Cats attack set to feature ex-GWS star Jeremy Cameron alongside Tom Hawkins.
Nicks also confirmed former Giants midfielder Jackson Hately had been overlooked.
HIGH-FLYING CROW COMMITS TO NEW DEAL
Adelaide has continued its re-signing spree in the lead-up to the season, handing emerging forward Shane McAdam a new deal.
As revealed by The Advertiser last week and confirmed in a statement on Thursday, the Crows have locked in McAdam until the end of 2023.
The 25-year-old, who was out of contract at season’s end, made his debut in Round 4, 2020, before finishing the campaign as the Crows’ second-highest goalkicker with 12 majors from 13 games.
He also placed seventh in the club’s best and fairest.
His extension follows Reilly O’Brien (2025), Rory Laird (2026), Josh Worrell (2023) and Andrew McPherson (2023) signing on last week.
Brodie Smith (2024) and Harry Schoenberg (2023) committed to the club earlier in the year.
Crows list manager Justin Reid said McAdam was a special talent.
“Last year we got to see that at AFL level in 13 games and we are excited about what is still to come,” Reid said.
“It’s great to have him buying into what we are building at the club as the latest player to extend his contract before the season starts.”
McAdam joined Adelaide from Sturt as a mature-aged pre-draft access selection in 2018, as part of Mitch McGovern’s trade to Carlton.
The high-flyer, who hails from Halls Creek, a remote town in the East Kimberley Region of WA, said he wanted to repay the Crows for giving him an AFL opportunity.
“I feel like I’ve come a long way in three years,” McAdam said.
“My first year was a big eye-opener and last year was good to get a regular taste of playing at AFL level and I feel like I’ve got a lot of improvement in me.
“As a team we knew last year if we kept working then the improvement would come and it did towards the end of the season, now it’s about carrying that into 2021.”
NICKS: MY SUPPORT FOR TYSON WILL NEVER WANE
Crows coach Matthew Nicks says his support for Tyson Stengle will never wane but thinks parting ways will be best for both the club and the small forward.
A day after the Crows cut ties with the 22-year-old for a third off-field indiscretion in eight months, Nicks told reporters he last spoke to Stengle about a week ago and planned to stay in contact.
“We will chat over the coming week or so but we spoke about a week ago to see how he was going, how training was going and that’ll continue,” Nicks said on Thursday.
“My support for Tyson as a person will never wane.
“I’ll always stay in contact.
“I’m disappointed we lost a quality player, a quality person.
“We’ll continue to work with Tyson and try and support him through this.
“But where it has finished I think will be the best for both parties.”
Adelaide re-signed Stengle on a new two-year contract in August — two months before he was caught with drugs in the CBD and four months after being reported for drink-driving.
In mid-December, the Crows stood him down for being pictured next to what appeared to be an illicit substance.
Nicks said parting with Stengle, who played 14 games in his two seasons at the club, was indicative of where the Crows were heading.
“We have a certain standard that we ask players to come in and perform to,” he said.
“We’re not asking too much with that — these guys are elite athletes.
“This is an elite environment and you need to be able to perform at that level.”
Stengle is hoping to return to the AFL via the mid-season draft in June.
He is weighing up whether to rejoin SANFL club Woodville-West Torrens, where he has been training since February, or switch to the VFL.
Adelaide will have the chance to fill Stengle’s vacant list spot in the mid-season draft.
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