Adelaide looks to young guns Darcy Fogarty, Ben Davis and Tyson Stengle to fill void left by Eddie Betts and Josh Jenkins
Adelaide allowed Josh Jenkins and Eddie Betts to leave last year for the sake of regeneration, with three rising stars trusted to fill the void by Matthew Nicks. Are they in your SuperCoach side?
Crows
Don't miss out on the headlines from Crows. Followed categories will be added to My News.
The evolution taking place at Adelaide is perhaps no more evident than inside 50m where three young players with just 19 games between them are to be trusted with filling the gaping hole left by two key departures last season.
Regardless of whether or not Adelaide was happy for Josh Jenkins and Eddie Betts to leave for the sake of regeneration in the off-season, they were second and third on the Crows’ goalkicking table with 59 between them in 2019.
Tyson Stengle (four games), Ben Davis (one game) and Darcy Fogarty (14 games) are in – for now anyway — and Elliott Himmelberg, Billy Frampton, Shane McAdam and Lachlan Murphy are fighting for spots in a forward line that will be anchored by Taylor Walker and Tom Lynch.
Lynch was Adelaide’s most experienced forward on Saturday as they kicked 10.10 (70) to Melbourne’s 15.13 (103) in their first official pre-season game.
Lynch is confident the Crows have the firepower to compete with the best this season but says it may take some time for them to jell.
MORE AFL NEWS:
Every KFC SuperCoach score from week one of the AFL’s pre-season Marsh Series
Richmond football boss Neil Balme relishing rise of women’s football as AFLW Tigers eye maiden win
Josh Addo-Carr delivers stirring tribute to indigenous AFL icon Nicky Winmar
Tyson Stengle shows he’s capable of filling Crows’ small forward role left vacant by Eddie Betts
“Certainly,” he said.
“Experience-wise it’s something where the guys haven’t played a lot of footy together but certainly had a whole pre-season together.
“I’m really optimistic about the ability and quality of the forwards we have, but it’s an area we will get better in as we go because continuity in playing with each other is going to come into it.”
Coach Matthew Nicks added: “We were definitely inexperienced down there today, but for a half of football we couldn’t have asked for more from them,” he said.
“The stuff we’ve been training, working on, they carried out really well and Lynchy led that, Tex will add to that as far as structure goes, and even just getting around a young group and keeping them in the right mental space.”
FOOTY TIPS! Join Australia’s best footy tipping competition for your chance to win big. Add our experts to your league and join now at TIPS.COM.AU
Nicks had high praise for Stengle who kicked one goal but did a mountain of work with his running and pressure to set up others for his team.
“I’m trying to keep him a secret,” Nicks said.
“He’s had his best pre-season, he’s worked right through and is getting a reward at the moment in our intra club games and trial games, he hasn’t put a foot wrong.
“Today there were some amazing passages that probably not many will look at where he’ spressuring the ball, working on his defence and causing goals helping us with that turnover game.
“He’s been outstanding and hopefully over the next couple of weeks he’ll get another few looks and add some experience.”
Adelaide’s new senior coach said he was pleased with their first half against the Demons but disappointed to fade out in the second.
“It wasn’t consistent enough and that’s going to be our challenge this season,” he said.
“You talk DNA and what does it mean? When you play a side like Melbourne who are elite at contested possession, we didn’t come in with an expectation to beat them in that area, it was to match them and we were able to do that for a certain period of time.”
Captain Rory Sloane had ice on his hip at half time but the injury was not serious, however Matt Crouch may be cited for a head-high bump on Clayton Oliver.
Sloane, Taylor Walker, Rory Laird and Brodie Smith are set to play in the state-of-origin fundraiser game on Friday night, while Fogarty, first-round draft pick Fischer McAsey and possibly Paul Seedsman may get their first run in an under-23 trial game against Port Adelaide on Saturday.