Adelaide legend Mark Ricciuto savages club effort in loss to Melbourne in Alice Springs

ADELAIDE legend Mark Ricciuto has savaged the club’s capitulation against Melbourne while revealing Taylor Walker and Rory Sloane are unlikely to help until after the bye.

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LABELLED ‘statues’ by Essendon great Matthew Lloyd and “painful to watch” by club power-broker Mark Ricciuto, battered Adelaide is straining to hold ground until elite reinforcements arrive.

Crows board member Ricciuto bemoaned a lack of on-field leadership and purpose in Adelaide’s 91-point capitulation against Melbourne that triggered silent treatment from livid coach Don Pyke.

However, Ricciuto has indicated Adelaide is unlikely to call on skipper Taylor Walker (glute/back) and Rory Sloane (Lisfranc) until after the Round 14 bye leaving a wounded unit to fend for itself.

Adelaide - now with a 6-4 win-loss record - hosts GWS on Sunday before tricky away trips against Fremantle and Hawthorn.

Experienced midfielder David Mackay says Adelaide must “own” its worst loss under Pyke and atone.

“It’s a real good lesson for us as a footy club that if we don’t bring the required intensity and if we’re slightly off our game, what can happen,” said Mackay.

A dejected Crows outfit leaves Traeger Park in Alice Springs after suffering their biggest loss under Don Pyke’s tenure. Picture: Quinn Rooney/Getty Images

“We take from it what we can in terms of learning. Ultimately it’s about our response next week and that is what we can control now.”

Lloyd lashed Adelaide’s absence of pressure in the Red Centre for being “blokes like statues”.

Ricciuto said Adelaide’s playing group should be forced to watch the loss in its entirety but would have tuned out if he had no official role with the club he captained with distinction.

“If I had no connection with the football club there is no way I would have watched that game after half-time,” 2003 Brownlow Medallist Ricciuto told Triple M.

“Crows fans were right to feel very annoyed with the way their football club played.

“It will be interesting to see how they review it.”

Curtly Hampton looms as the only hardened addition Pyke can call on.

Inform, ‘metre-man’ Paul Seedsman has succumbed to the groin scourge that limited his 2017 campaign to five games while dependable Luke Brown was concussed against the Demons.

Brilliant utility Mitch McGovern (ankle), Brodie Smith (knee), Brad Crouch (groin) and Riley Knight (hamstring) round out a sidelined, first choice cast.

Mackay said Ricciuto’s criticism and Pyke’s unprecedented three-quarter time stare down of players was warranted

“It is fair enough. We were really disappointed with that performance as our fans would be as well. It is not what we expect of ourselves.,” Mackay said.

“Pykey was just trying to, I guess, elicit a response from us.

“Coming into the huddle and we obviously realise it was a really poor performance up to that point.

“As a playing group we all understand how we’re going and the areas we’re poor at - we just weren’t able to arrest that and change it.”

Ricciuto hopes a pattern of blowouts last year against North Melbourne, Melbourne and Richmond in the Grand Final where Adelaide “didn’t fire a shot” don’t return this season.

“When they are getting beaten they don’t seem to haven any ability to do something different in terms of on-field leadership or players doing something different,” Ricciuto said.