SA footy legend Andrew Jarman tells why he believes Jake Soligo can be the Crows’ main midfield star
Jake Soligo has been in the Adelaide midfield for just a couple of games. One former Crow and SA footy great couldn’t be more impressed with what has seen so far.
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A club great has lauded the rise of young midfield star Jake Soligo and called for him to be “first picked” in the Crows engine room going forward.
The 21 year old has burst onto the scene in recent weeks, playing a pivotal role in the middle during Adelaide’s breakthrough win over Carlton with an equal team-high 27 disposals and six clearances.
Former Crow Andrew Jarman believes he has seen enough from Soligo to start him in the middle for the rest of the season.
“He is first picked in the midfield group for me,” the two-time Magarey Medallist and Adelaide team of the decade member told this masthead.
“I know they have been wanting to blood some of these younger boys and Nicksy (Matthew Nicks) in hindsight you’d love to throw them in there in Round 1 with (Josh) Rachele, (Izak) Rankine and Daws (Jordan Dawson) who is the captain of the club and has class and now Jake.
“We are starting to see some signs and there is still a way to go but build your midfield group around this young man and I think in the next 10 years you will start to see some success.”
Before Adelaide’s win over Carlton on Saturday, the 0-4 start by the Crows in 2024 reignited debate about the drafting success in recent years at West Lakes.
There can’t be an argument that Soligo, the 36th pick of the 2021 draft, was not an almighty steal by the Crows.
Jarman said he believed the 21-year-old could reach big heights in the Crows midfield.
“I just like the way he uses the footy and if he is running 80 to 90 per cent (disposal) efficiency I will love him for life, those are the sorts of players that I can watch all day,” he said.
“He has to get to around 25 disposals a game and once he does that, and he will, he is going to be talked about like they talk about (Connor) Rozee and (Zak) Butters young Jake.”
Over the past three games, since his centre bounce attendances have skyrocketed Soligo has averaged exactly 25 disposals.
Against two of the strongest midfield outfits in the league, Melbourne in Round 4 and Carlton in Round 5, he recorded 27 disposals and six clearances in both games.
Against the Dees he had 12 ground ball gets, he had nine against the Blues, while against Melbourne in Round 4 he had 14 contested possessions and increased this by one the following week.
Last week he also had the most centre bounce attendances out of any Crows midfielder as Adelaide snared a famous win away from home.
It’s a breakout in the true sense of the word for Soligo so far this year.
But it is one that has not really surprised those at West Lakes to an extent with the smart midfielder rated so highly he is signed at the club until the 2029 season.
Throughout pre-season Soligo was constantly name-checked as the outstanding Crow on the track, along with Riley Thilthorpe who is out for most of the season after his knee injury.
But an ankle injury suffered in a marking contest meant Soligo missed the pre-season hitouts against Port Adelaide and West Coast.
And when he did return because of conditioning he was the sub against Gold Coast in Round 1.
Teammate Ben Keays said he loved Soligo even more off the field than he did on the field and the work he did in pre-season was coming to the fore.
“I love his work ethic, he puts his head down and has a laugh as well,” he said.
“He is one of my favourite teammates.
“The work you do in pre-season shines through and Jake is playing some really good footy.”
On the field Jarman said Soligo was just what the Crows needed in the engine room.
“What we are starting to see now is a genuine, classy midfielder that the Adelaide Crows badly need going forward,” he said.
“And I have been very impressed with what I have seen, I have been watching him very closely and this kid is going to be an absolute beauty.
“He will be right up there once he gets his body right and he gets a bit more of an aerobic capacity to play midfield
“His versatility impresses me … as does his football smarts as he moves around the ground, he sees things early and it is not easy playing as a midfielder.
“These cocky half back flankers and defenders and forwards think they can play midfield, no you have to have the DNA and young Jake has that.
“He has good decision making, I like the work he does when he brings the ball inside 50 that is really important in today’s game.
“So as a forward you would be licking your lips. But he covers the ground and his work at the stoppage is really good, for a lad who is building his frame he gets in there.”
Nicks said Soligo was “just rock solid”.
“For such a young player who hasn’t got a lot of games under his belt, he’s playing at such a high level,” he said.
“He’s got a great balance in his game of inside and outside.
“He’s complementing Matty (Crouch), Lairdy (Rory Laird) and Jordan (Dawson).
“He’s playing at a level probably above what most would expect at this time in his career.”
Jarman, who 92 goals in his 110 games with the Crows, said Soligo adding scoring to his game was the next evolution for him.
“I just love the way he sees the game and he gets in position early, the only thing he needs to work on and no doubt he is probably working on it is that he needs to hit the scoreboard a bit more as a mid,” he said.
“If he can kick a goal a game, what I tried to focus when I was playing that if you get one goal a game that helps the team as a midfield group.
“He can play anywhere but geez he is nice, he is nice to watch and you know when he is near the footy you are in good hands and that is the type of player that is good for the club.
“We have a good one here now he is starting to get some momentum.”
Originally published as SA footy legend Andrew Jarman tells why he believes Jake Soligo can be the Crows’ main midfield star
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