AFL 2024: All the latest Adelaide Crows news

The Crows star says his side has been hit hard by injuries, while football boss Mark Ricciuto is still standing firm behind the playing list, even with finals in doubt.

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - JUNE 01: Taylor Walker of the Crows reacts following the round 12 AFL match between Hawthorn Hawks and Adelaide Crows at Melbourne Cricket Ground, on June 01, 2024, in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Morgan Hancock/AFL Photos/via Getty Images)

Adelaide talisman Taylor Walker says the Crows have been seriously hurt by injuries in 2024, while football director and club legend Mark Ricciuto says their list is “absolutely good enough” to play finals if it is healthy.

The Crows loss to Richmond on Thursday has resulted in their finals chances all but being over and has piled pressure on the club and its key figures.

Matthew Nicks’ side take on ladder-leading Sydney on Saturday as the pressure mounts on the Crows.

They are set to get Walker back from his back issue and star Izak Rankine from his hamstring issue, with key defender Nick Murray also in the mix for his first AFL game since his ACL injury last year.

Walker said it was injuries like this that hurt the Crows, who came into the season targeting a return to finals for the first time since 2017.

Walker missed the loss to the Tigers. (Photo by Morgan Hancock/AFL Photos/via Getty Images)

“I was thinking about it as I was coming in here this morning, how do we talk about where we are at and I think it is simple if you take out seven or eight of your starting 18 out of your team and we have had that in myself, Ranks, (Riley) Thilthorpe, Murray, (Wayne) Milera, (Matt) Crouch is out, (Josh) Worrell is out,” he said on Triple M on Tuesday.

“And if you are a Crows fan you probably go here they go, here are the excuses, it's the facts, we have had long term injuries, we’ve had a few of our key players out so it does leave a massive hole on game day.

“However it does create an opportunity for our young guys to step up and on the weekend we were nowhere near the level.

“I knew at the start of the year if we stayed healthy we would give finals a bit of a shake-up, we have been unfortunate with some key guys going down and they have been long term injuries as well.”

“But we are going to find out about our younger group, who can and who can’t for the rest of this year.”

Walker also said Nicks - who has copped criticism from fans online - had his full backing.

“I have full faith in him, we will be fine. He is feeling the pinch as you do but he is staying positive and keeping the joint very upbeat,” he said.

The loss to the Tigers, which has the Crows in the bottom four, has sparked significant debate and criticism about the list management decisions at West Lakes.

Ricciuto said he believed the Crows list was good enough.

“I think at the start of the year more people than not thought we would challenge for finals and I was one of them, I thought we could play finals this year after getting as close as we did last year,” he said.

Crows footy director Mark Ricciuto. (AAP Image/David Mariuz)

“But we have had a combination of lack of form for some players and injuries, and when you combine that you also get a lack of confidence as well.

“I still think our list is absolutely good enough to play finals if it is fully fit or nearly fully fit but you cannot have that many numbers.

“We have had a combination of that.”

The Crows started the season poorly, before claiming wins against Carlton at Marvel Stadium and Port Adelaide in the Showdown.

Ricciuto said the last two weeks “haven’t been good enough” but the Crows could turn it around quickly.

“In the first four games I was a bit confused about why we weren’t playing as well as what we were after playing two good games at the start of the year. Tex was injured, Thilthorpe was out and Murray was out but we just couldn’t move the ball like we wanted to, we couldn’t get that connection between midfield and forward,” he said.

“I thought the next two months after that we played really good footy, we lost by a kick to Essendon, Collingwood, we won a game by a kick against Carlton, we drew with Brisbane so we were mixing it with the best sides in the competition.

“The last two weeks haven’t been good enough, everyone is entitled to be frustrated about that from supporters to absolutely everyone.

“At the start of the year, I thought and most people thought we were good enough to play finals, we haven’t lived up to that and we have to find out why.”

CROWS CONFIDENT OF TURNAROUND AS PRESSURE MOUNTS

Adelaide assistant coach Nathan van Berlo says the Crows’ coaching group “don’t feel we are too far away from being able to turn things in the direction that we need” as they look to alleviate the mounting pressure on the club.

The Crows take on ladder-leading Sydney at Adelaide Oval on Saturday as they look to respond from the disastrous loss to Richmond last time out - which sparked an outpouring of criticism from fans about the direction of the club.

Following the loss to the Tigers, who had won just the one game prior to the clash, senior coach Matthew Nicks said the Crows were “not good enough at this point” and had zero confidence.

Adelaide are under the pump. (Photo by Sarah Reed/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

Van Berlo said the Crows reviewed the loss to the Tigers on Monday and were ready to get back to work.

“There were a lot of things from the night that we want to do better and there were some things that we did well as well, so we reviewed it in a similar vain to previous weeks,” he said.

“After any loss there are always a range of emotions that hang around and drive you for the next game.

“We were feeling that after the Hawthorn game (a week prior), we were disappointed with our mindset and the way we went about it.

“So it is more when you don’t get the result you want to get, the emotion sits with you and drives you to get better.

“Obviously the result doesn’t go our way so we aren’t good enough in those four quarters of footy, do we feel that we are good enough to win that game? Yes we do and it is the same for any other game.

“But if we don’t execute at the level we know we can be at and the one we have to then you walk away saying you aren’t good enough.

“We believe our footy is good enough to beat anyone, we just have to bring our best and on Thursday night we didn’t do that.”

Matthew Nicks’ side’s finals dream is almost dead. (Photo by Sarah Reed/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

The Crows are set to welcome back stars Izak Rankine and Taylor Walker, providing they can get through training on Wednesday, as they recover from hamstring and back injuries.

Brayden Cook is also set to be available after he missed the loss to the Tigers with a knee injury, while Nick Murray and Luke Pedlar could be rewarded for strong SANFL performances.

Pedlar played in the midfield against South Adelaide, with his shoulder holding up well.

Ruckman Kieran Strachan ran laps at West Lakes on Monday after he was subbed out with a groin issue against the Tigers, following coming in for the dropped Reilly O’Brien.

The Crows have copped it from all angles following the loss to the Tigers.

Van Berlo said the Crows were frustrated with how they were travelling.

“I get a feel of what the public narrative would be, but make no mistake we are just as frustrated as what our supporters would be,” he said.

“We know that we can be producing better than what we have been at the moment, we know we are a few solders down - we will get some back this week which is pleasing - but ultimately with the guys who are taking the park there is more that we can get out of them.

“We are disappointed, we know we can be and are capable of more so we will keep working.”

Nicks himself has come under heat from fans, conceding after the loss to the Tigers that he was under the most pressure in his time at West Lakes.

Van Berlo said the coaching group was behind Nicks.

“We have reviewed where we need to get better, we are aligned as coaches of what we saw in the game,” he said.

“There are some easy fixes for us and some longer term focuses that we need to continue to work on.

“We are all behind Nicksy and where we are headed and in a lot of ways we don’t feel we are too far away from being able to turn things in the direction that we need.”

Originally published as AFL 2024: All the latest Adelaide Crows news