Crows chief executive Tim Silvers confirms Adelaide will use the mid-season bye to scrutinise how it has coped with pressure and expectation
Adelaide chief executive Tim Silvers won’t be making ‘rash decisions’ after Thursday night’s loss, but he’s questioned how well the players have handled the heat this year.
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Adelaide will use the mid-season bye to scrutinise how it has coped with pressure and expectation this year.
But Crows chief executive Tim Silvers will not “throw people under the bus” in response to the club’s poor start.
After expecting to play finals this season and saying it would embrace the pressure, Adelaide slumped to 14th on the ladder with a 4-1-8 record on the back of an eight-point home loss to Richmond on Thursday night.
Defeat to the one-win Tigers all but ended the Crows’ finals hopes, as well as continued their struggles under the weight of expectation and in close games.
Over the past two years, they boast a 9-1-7 record as favourites with the bookmakers and are 2-1-9 in matches decided by eight points or fewer.
Adelaide seems to play better as underdogs, winning six games since the start of 2023 and getting within a goal of flag contenders Collingwood (three times), Brisbane and Melbourne.
The Crows hired a new performance psychologist during the off-season in a bid to improve in tight matches, help players’ mindset and deal with pressure.
Silvers told ABC Grandstand the club might have been burdened by the expectation of finals this year.
“On wins and losses, we have to question that,” Silvers said.
“From the surface, it doesn’t appear like we’ve dealt with it as well.
“We just lost a little bit of momentum early in the season (being 0-4) that put us on the back foot and had us chasing our tail.
“But that’s something we’ll strongly review at the bye (after round 14).”
Silvers resisted external calls for mid-season changes to key off-field positions.
While conceding the club “haven’t hit expectations”, he said there was no specific win-loss ratio Nicks needed to achieve this year.
The coach finished bottom, 15th, 14th and 10th in his four other seasons.
“I don’t want to be that leader who’s going to throw people under the bus and make rash decisions after these losses,” Silvers said.
“We’re in a rut but I’ve got to back in what we’ve got at the minute.
“We’re going to review ourselves, take stock, we’re going to find ways to be better.”
Silvers forecasted line-up tweaks with an eye to the future and midfield focus.
Adelaide has blooded two debutants this season, 2022 draftee Billy Dowling and its top selection last November, Daniel Curtin.
“We’re looking to win, that’s the main objective ... so it’s going to be our best 23,” Silvers said of selection for upcoming games.
“We do want to look at players in different positions and look at players who haven’t played much AFL to give them a shot, but they need them to deserve it.
“You can’t just give games away because I find that can have a poor effect on the culture.
“We’ve got to find our best mix in the midfield.
“We’ve got to put other players through and see what’s going to be a dynamic midfield into the future.”
In a lengthy chat, Silvers also spoke about ...
■ Criticism that Adelaide was a boys’ club that did not hold long-standing staff accountable:
“I don’t think that’s who we are or what we stand for or the type of people we’ve got. We’ve got really good footy people. We’ve got people like (high-performance boss) Darren Burgess and (football manager) Adam Kelly – I wouldn’t have thought the moniker is fair to those people. They challenge, they review and hold each other to account”.
■ How Nicks was feeling:
“Nicksy’s flat and disappointed in the outcome on Thursday night. He’s confident in his abilities, we know he’s still got the group. We still think he’s a really good coach. We’ll get around him, support him and make sure he’s OK. Most successful clubs, primarily, have all been about stability and backing their people to the hilt. You saw that with Damien Hardwick at Richmond.”
■ Whether Adelaide’s list was good enough:
“If you’re looking at wins and losses, the answer is no. But I think there’s some strengths in our list. We have some key young talent coming through. We’ve got to find some pieces of the puzzle to help us take that next step”.
Crows captain’s desperate plea to fans as season hits new low
– Simeon Thomas-Wilson
Adelaide captain Jordan Dawson has pleaded for Crows fans to “stick with us” despite the club’s season sinking to a new low following their loss to Richmond.
And leadership group member Ben Keays says the messaging of coach Matthew Nicks was still getting through, but players weren’t “executing the contest side of things”.
Keays also conceded the Crows were beaten by a Tigers outfit that “brought a better brand of contest and better mentality”.
The Crows are copping it from all angles after going down to the Tigers — who had just won once this season — at Adelaide Oval on Thursday evening.
The loss all but ended the Crows chances of making finals and has Adelaide fans questioning where the club is headed after many expected Nicks’ side to mount a top-eight tilt this year.
After the game, Dawson fronted the media to answer questions about the Crows’ struggles.
He disagreed with the suggestion that the Crows had “gone backwards” in 2024 and hoped fans would continue to back them.
“While it is disappointing it can change quickly, I think the messaging has been consistent from the coaches and we are a united group,” he said.
“We feel their frustration, I know they ride our highs and lows so it is bloody disappointing. “I’m extremely disappointed in how we are playing.
“I know we say it all the time but as long as they stick with us and keep rocking up for us because the competition is so tight.
“We know what we need to work on and what to do and from my perspective it can change so quickly.
“If we get on a bit of a role hopefully and they show good faith to us we can get the wins and be back up there.”
Keays said Thursday night was a low moment for the Crows and agreed with Nicks’ statement that Adelaide had no confidence.
“I would probably say it is pretty close to being the flattest period, if you look at the last couple of weeks the Hawks game and this game and considering ladder positions and the significance of each game and I guess the style of footy that we have played I definitely would say it is one of the tougher periods,” he said.
“I think over the last couple of weeks being beaten at the contest is the most disappointing part because we pride ourselves in being a strong contested team so to be beaten up around the ball and in the contest is probably the most disappointing part I think.”
Much of the criticism from fans has targeted Nicks, who signed a new two-year contract extension after Round 1.
“Absolutely I think we aren’t just executing the contest side of things, there is so much game planning and tactics you can do but if you don’t get your hands on the footy and win the contest it is all for nothing really,” Keays said.
“That is the number one element of the game that teams need to bring.
“Absolutely, we all back each other. Week to week it is tough to get these results but you have to look at the sum of the parts, we have been at this for a long time now and we have had pre-seasons together, off-seasons together, trainings together, practice games, previous seasons.
“It is a long, long journey so we all back each other and we are trying to stick together.”
The Crows were without key players against Richmond, but the Tigers have been decimated by injuries this year.
The loss compounded a horror round 12 showing from the Crows against Hawthorn.
“The competition is so even and everyone is coming ready to play and if we don’t come ready to play 100 per cent of the time we are going to get beaten,” Keays said.
“There are a whole number of factors you can look at … but if you don’t show up you get left behind and we need to rectify this.”
Keays said the Crows were led down by their mentality against the Tigers.
“Every team in the league can put out a good performance and we were just beaten by a better team last night, they brought a better brand of contest and a better mentality,” he said.
“That’s what beat us.”
Originally published as Crows chief executive Tim Silvers confirms Adelaide will use the mid-season bye to scrutinise how it has coped with pressure and expectation
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