Bryce Gibbs given chance to cement his spot in Adelaide Crows side as late replacement for Matt Crouch
Former Carlton star Bryce Gibbs has been given a chance to cement himself in the side after Matt Crouch failed a fitness test for Adelaide on Friday morning.
Crows
Don't miss out on the headlines from Crows. Followed categories will be added to My News.
FORMER Blue Bryce Gibbs has been given a reprieve and now has a chance to cement himself in the Crows’ line-up after Matt Crouch on Friday failed a fitness test and will miss Saturday’s match against Brisbane at the Gabba with a corked hip.
Gibbs, who missed last week with back spasms, had been named as an emergency but is now expected the spend the bulk of the game in the midfield as a selection squeeze is looming at West Lakes.
Both veteran utility Richard Douglas and former Magpie Paul Seedsman will return from injury in the club’s reserves side this weekend and Matt Crouch is expected to come back next week which leaves Gibbs and the other flankers-midfielders under pressure to perform to keep their spots.
But coach Don Pyke could not have wished for a more seasoned replacement for Crouch, with Gibbs taking 258 games experience into the match.
“The team’s been playing really well,” Pyke said.
“Bryce was in the team a couple of weeks ago, missed last week obviously with a back and we looked at it from a match committee viewpoint — it was hard to make too many changes given the way the side’s performing and the roles which we see Bryce playing there were other guys ahead of him.
“I think he’ll play more as a mid.
“He’s played a lot of footy both as a mid and down back.
“He played reasonably well down back for us a couple of weeks ago but he’s played a lot as a mid.
“I’ll expect he’s ready to go and looking forward to the opportunity.”
Brodie Smith trained well on Friday morning as he recovers from a sore calf and is expected to play. Ned McHenry will be on standby as the travelling emergency.
Why Crows wanted the kid who really wanted them
In the build up to the draft, rival clubs were split on what the Crows would do – take the homegrown talent or the powerful Victorian. But the decision was about far more than that.
SA draft whispers: Late intel on giant Sturt bolter, fellow prospects
It’s draft day, and there’s plenty of gun South Australian talent on offer to AFL clubs. MATT TURNER has the late mail on a Sturt bolter and where nine other players could land.